Ashes 2021: Tim Paine insists series going ahead 'whether Joe Root is here or not’

Australian Test skipper Tim Paine has insisted that the Ashes 2021 will go ahead irrespective of whether his England counterpart Joe Root will be playing or not. Earlier, England's vice-captain Jos Buttler had made it clear that he would not be touring Australia to feature in the five-match Test series without his family taking the stringent bio-bubble restrictions into consideration.

Lately, the veteran Aussie stumper has gone on to say that the England vs Australia series will go on smoothly without being affected.

Tim Paine exudes confidence in the smooth conduct of Ashes 2021

“There’ll be a squad of England players coming here and the First Test will be starting on December 8 whether Joe is here or not. They all want to come, there‘s no doubt about that. It’ll be worked out above us and then they’ll have a choice whether to get on that plane or not", said Tim Paine while speaking to radio station SEN Hobart.

“No one is forcing any England player to come. That‘s the beauty of the world we live in. You have a choice. If you don’t want to come, don’t come", he added.

The Ashes schedule

Coming back to Australia vs England Ashes 2021 schedule, two of world cricket's traditional rivals Australia and England will renew their rivalry when both teams face off in a five-match Test series for the 'Urn' come December.

The first Australia vs England Test match will be contested at the 'Gabba' Brisbane from 8-12 December whereas, the second Test match at the Adelaide Oval from 16-20 December will be a Day-Night affair. The iconic Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (26-30 December) and Sydney Cricket Ground (5-9 January) respectively, with the final Test scheduled for Perth’s Optus Stadium (14-18 January).

It will be for the first time in 26 years that the final Ashes Test will not be staged in Sydney. Moreover, the Aussies had successfully retained the urn after drawing the five-match away Test series against England 2-2 in 2019. At the same time, Australia ended up avoiding a defeat on English soil for the first time since 2001.

At the same time, England would be hoping to lay their hands on the prestigious urn for the first time after the 2015/16 season where they had defeated the Michael Clarke-led Australian team at home.