The Ashes Chatter: Pressure on Bancroft and Khawaja?

After a bore draw at the MCG, the Ashes circus arrives this week at its fifth and final destination. Although the fifth Test in Sydney is another dead rubber, both teams will want to end the series on a high at the famous SCG and as the previous game showed, no Test between Australia and England is anything other than full-on.

Cricbuzz correspondents Rob Johnston and Tristan Lavalette discuss the talking points ahead of the fifth Test between Australia and England.

Should England drop Moeen Ali and replace him with Mason Crane?

Lavalette: Absolutely. It's been a sad plight for Moeen, who is such an effectively devastating player when on song. Unfortunately, there has been none of Moeen's trademark swashbuckling batting in this series and Australia have treated his spin bowling with utter disdain. A finger injury hasn't helped his cause either.

Moeen's madcap innings in Melbourne - amid a batting paradise - spoke of a player totally bereft of confidence. Clearly, he needs a spell from Test cricket. Perhaps, he can recapture his dynamic best in the upcoming limited-overs format but, right now, he deserves to be dropped.

Mason Crane, the precocious legspinner, should be given a chance at a venue which traditionally favours spin. The makeup of the SCG pitch is unknown but early indications are that it might not be particularly spin-friendly. Still, amid a dead rubber, it's a golden opportunity to play Crane and see what the 20-year-old can do on the big stage.

Johnston: Unfortunately, I don't see any other course of action unless the pitch is dry and England chose to play both Moeen and Crane. If they opt for the single spinner, Crane should make his debut at the ground where he made history playing for New South Wales last winter after a brilliant season in Sydney grade cricket.

Moeen is a fine cricketer - aggressive with the ball and free spirited with the bat - but he has shown so little form that it may even be kinder for him to be left out. His bowling has been ineffectual and he has evidently lost the trust of captain Joe Root. With the bat, he looks frazzled at the crease and Nathan Lyon has his number.

It will not be the end of Moeen in an England shirt and he still has a bright future ahead of him. He was the fifth fastest player to score 2000 Test runs and take 100 wickets, beating the likes of Sir Ian Botham and Sir Garfield Sobers, which proves his undoubted talent. A game off in Sydney should be no more than that.

Does the current Ashes schedule - which sees the MCG and SCG so often hosting dead rubbers - need to be revamped?

Lavalette: It is a major shame the MCG and SCG Tests have so often been dead rubber affairs. Personally, I'm not against mixing up the Australian summer scheduling - and not just for Ashes series. Sometimes it can feel too structured and perhaps there is room for a change up occasionally.

Remember when the MCG and SCG Tests used to be the second and third Ashes Tests? Or when Adelaide often hosted its Test during Australia Day in late January? Why can't that be the case every now and again?

Simply put, there shouldn't be a uniform approach in regards to scheduling otherwise it feels rather stale after a while.

Johnston: England would probably prefer a change in the schedule to give them a better chance of success Down Under. Brisbane, where Australia have a brilliant record, is a mightily tough place for opposition teams to start a series and I'm sure England would also prefer the MCG and SCG Tests, the two venues where they receive the most travelling support, to be played while the series is still alive.

I agree with Tristan, too. The Ashes schedule in England changes from series to series and it provides greater variety than the current schedule in Australia does. Remember the 2009 drawn Test in Cardiff? What about the back to back matches in the Midlands in 2015 when England took control of that series? Different series, different schedules, different rhythms and patterns.

If CA aren't careful, the uniform Ashes schedule may become boring so they should consider mixing things up like the ECB do. The Australian board understandably wants to give their team the best chance of success but I'd like to see a change to the schedule in 2021 to provide a bit more variety.

Australia's batting continues to be a concern. Is Cameron Bancroft and/or Usman Khawaja under pressure to make the tour of South Africa?

Lavalette: Somehow, someway, Australia unbelievably lost 7 for 67 in their first innings on the benign MCG wicket of the fourth Test. It was a sobering reality for Australia, who are fortunate they have David Warner and, particularly, the batting cyborg Steve Smith continually propping up the order.

Bancroft started the series solidly but has fallen away and needs a score in Sydney to make the tour of South Africa. Aiding his chances is that there aren't many options around with Bancroft's predecessor Matthew Renshaw having a disastrous summer. Another option for selectors could be moving trouble shooter Shaun Marsh into the opening slot - he has successfully performed the role in the past - and inserting Glenn Maxwell, Travis Head or Peter Handscomb at No. 5.

Bancroft's on shaky ground but Usman Khawaja has been the disappointment. Even in the comforts of home, Khawaja has underperformed averaging just 27 for the series. Having recently turned 31, Khawaja is entering a tricky juncture of his career. How much longer will selectors keep investing faith into Khawaja? If he misses out in Sydney, it might be time to move on from the teasing elegant southpaw.

Johnston: Having seen Bancroft play for Gloucestershire, I wasn't convinced that he is a Test match opener when he was selected before the first Test and I am even less convinced now. He seems to have an obvious technical flaw - falling over to the off-side - which makes him susceptible outside off-stump and his returns have been mediocre aside from one innings in Brisbane. Although Renshaw is struggling for form, I still rate him very highly and would pick him for the South African series.

Khawaja is such a frustrating player in a similar way that James Vince is for England. Khawaja plays very stylishly against the quick bowlers and has scored a lot of runs in Australia yet the selectors seem to have little faith in him which is why he's been dropped a number of times. He has constantly flattered to deceive in this series, making two half-centuries and reaching double figures in each innings, yet he has failed to go on. I'd take him to South Africa where his back foot play will be suited to the conditions but he needs a big series there to finally convince the doubters.

What final score line is the most accurate reflection of this series: Australia 3-0, 4-0 or 3-1?

Lavalette: England just haven't looked likely to take 20 wickets in a Test, so I'm going with 3-0. Australia has more firepower and class in their conditions but the gulf hasn't been that huge between the sides. Every Test has been competitive despite the lop-sided results.

In some ways it feels reminiscent of the 2013 Ashes in England where England won easily but the series was generally competitive. The score line on that occasion? 3-0.

Johnston: 3-0 would be a fair reflection because England have competed at stages of all the Test matches but just haven't been able to capitalise on those moments when they have had the initiative. Although Australia have been clearly the better team, they haven't meted out a real shellacking to England as they did in 2006/7 and towards the latter stages of the 2013/14 series. It still might end up 4-0 but that would probably be slightly harsh on England.

Who wins the Test?

Lavalette: Early indications of the mysterious SCG wicket - there has not been any Sheffield Shield cricket played there this season - is that it is grassy and could favour the pacemen. However, as testament to the previous question, I'll back a draw and stick with the series finishing 3-0.

Johnston: If Mitchell Starc plays, as he is expected to, England will have their work cut out to get a victory but they should at least be in better spirits after Melbourne. If the left-armer does play, Australia will win to take a 4-0 series victory.