On the face of it, it’s one of the smallest prizes in the world of sport, a tiny urn just four inches tall, but for those who have won the Ashes, it is far more than that: it’s a piece of history.
Former captain Joe Root said recently that winning the Ashes can “set you up for life”, and many great players have never lifted the coveted trophy.
It is one of the oldest rivalries in sport, the former convict colony against England, and is fiercely contested.
Australia have not won in England since 2001, while their opponents have not won outright for eight years, since Sir Alastair Cook’s side won in 2015.
Those looking to etch their name in the history books were often the same ones to be inspired to first pick up a bat and ball in the garden, it is an interest that spans generations.
The Independent spoke to four former England players about what the Ashes means to them.
33 Ashes Tests, 66 innings, 1,900 runs, average 29.68, highest score 105
“To be honest the Ashes have been a thread throughout my life. I can remember as a boy watching highlights briefly of the ‘75-76 series in Australia when England were getting pounded by Lillee and Thompson and then Beefy’s Ashes in ’81, which was about the only day of Test cricket I went to before I played,” Atherton, who now commentates on cricket for Sky Sports, told The Independent.
“So, it’s been a constant throughout my life and I think that’s the same for a lot of people and that’s why people hold it dear.
“Because the game is changing so rapidly before our eyes and you’ve got this thing that doesn’t change. Five Test matches between two sides, and that’s a constant and it’s a reassuring constant.”
Atherton’s England never won an Ashes series, in fact during the 1990s when he opened the batting, the team won just 26 matches, losing 43 and with 38 draws.
“I haven’t got very many good ones (memories) because I never won the Ashes of course,” Atherton said.
“What I do remember is I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous than opening the batting in an Ashes series in Australia.
“I was thinking of Rory Burns last time, and he obviously got bowled first ball of the series. It took me back actually to Australia and batting in 1990-91, when I was about 23.
“I just remember the nerves on that first morning in Brisbane, my heart was pounding and it was a full house. It was about the most nerve-wracking thing you can do as a cricketer, so I still remember that vividly.
“It all came rushing back to me when Rory Burns lost his leg stump.”
13 Test matches, 26 innings, 1,026 runs, highest score 114 not out, average 48.85. 44 one-day internationals against Australia, 1,092 runs, average 26.63, 25 T20 matches, average 25.20, 605 runs
Edwards made her debut before any money had trickled down into the women’s game, and certainly long before professionalism, she recalls making her debut in a skirt, and having to pay for her own England blazer.
“I played my first Ashes in ’98, it was a three-match Test series, so very different to what that series looks like now,” Edwards told The Independent.
“I just loved it, I think you grow up watching Ashes series and you want to play in them and then to be a part of it and to have that experience of playing against Australia was special and they were such a great team at the time.
“Then I guess it was winning the Ashes in 2005 was probably one of the highlights of my career. We hadn’t won the Ashes for 42 years, and then we went on a bit of a winning spree against them, which was nice.
“Probably the only thing I get a little bit jealous of – or I miss about playing cricket – is the thought of playing Australia in a Test match. It was pretty cool.”
Seven Ashes Tests, 13 innings, 210.5 overs, wickets 28, average 30.39, best innings figures 6-79
“I think the one that I remember the most was the 2005 series, and I would have been 15 or 16 when that series happened,” Finn told The Independent.
“My earliest memory is watching all of that one and watching it religiously. I think we even had a TV in the common room at school that we were allowed to watch the Ashes on all the way through that series.
“Everyone stayed in tune with it and the whole country was willing England on it was great.”
Finn was a part of one of England’s greatest victories this century, and their Ashes series win in Australia in 2010-11, was the first down under since 1986-87, but was left out of the final two Test matches, with Chris Tremlett coming into the side and making a crucial impact.
“I think when you look back on it you think you were part of something that was amazing, when you were in it, all you can focus on is that I got dropped for the two important Test matches,” he said.
“But when you take a step back and 13 years on now you certainly think I was part of a squad of players that went and did something that’s really difficult to do.”
He added: “Before you lift the urn and whilst you’re stood there with all the press and their cameras waiting for you to lift it, that moment is something that not many people will get to experience, and I’m lucky that I’ve done it three times.”
23 Ashes Tests, 45 innings, 1,581 runs, highest score 207, average 38.56
“Obviously there are a lot of difficult days because we were playing against arguably one of the best sides of all time in that Australian side of the 1990s and early 2000s,” Hussain, who will be working on Sky Sports for the upcoming series, told The Independent.
“People ask me, ‘do you wish you’d played against different (Aussies)?’, but I loved playing against that Australian side, that’s why you play the game. To be 24 yards away from Shane (Warne) with the ball in his hand and chirping away at you and watching Mark Waugh clip it off his legs for four and Hayden and Gilchrist coming at you.
“It was tough work but it was why you played the game, it was so enjoyable playing against them.
“We had our good days, obviously Edgbaston in ’97, The Oval a couple of times, Sydney a couple of times, we played some good cricket against them but we could never have that sustained pressure.
“My first series as a pundit was one of the greatest of all time in 2005.
“While we were all hiding behind our sofas or commentary box positions, Michael Vaughan was leading England to a memorable win.”
:: Every match of the men’s and women’s Ashes will be shown live and exclusively on Sky Sports and NOW from 16th June.
