'Dad's Army' Australia Test Side Looks Jaded': England Great's Remark On Pat Cummins And Co

Former captain Michael Vaughan feels Australia looked jaded in the recent home Test series against the West Indies and said England stand a great chance in next year's Ashes if a "Dad's Army" is fielded by their arch-rivals. Vaughan said most of the players in the current Australian Test side are ageing and the need of the hour is to infuse fresh talent in order to continue dominating world cricket. Australia drew the recent two-Test series against the West Indies, who have a poor record Down Under.

Playing in only his second Test, Shamar Joseph single-handedly guided West Indies to a narrow eight-run win at Brisbane, returning with stunning figures of 7/68 in the second innings.

"There was not much optimism in Australia that it would be a great Test summer because the two touring teams, Pakistan and West Indies, had poor recent records Down Under. But it was actually very competitive, as proved by the Windies pulling off that stunning win at the Gabba," Vaughan wrote in a column for 'The Telegraph'.

"I could see Australia being quite a jaded team by then. David Warner has become the first of that set of great players to retire, and the rest are in their thirties now, so the age profile is a concern for them.

"Time passes and minds start to turn to what comes next in life. This group of players has won everything going, so what motivates them? I know well from experience after 2005 how quickly things can unravel when a Dad's Army team plays in the Ashes. You can look over the hill very quickly," he added.

Vaughan said the unexpected loss in Brisbane at the hands of the West Indies has raised England's hopes in the Ashes next year.

"Australia remain a very good side. Pat Cummins is an outstanding leader, and when they