Three players from the Ashes team who did not play in the first Test (Jacob Bethell, Matthew Potts and Josh Tongue) were included in the Canberra match.
Part of the reason England did not send the first Test XI to the capital is the difference in conditions between Canberra and Brisbane.
The pitch at Manuka Oval is likely to be slow and low, in contrast to the pace and bounce of the Gabba. On Thursday, the day after England arrived in Brisbane, temperatures in the city were expected to reach 36C, compared to 24C in Canberra.
Trailing 1-0, England almost certainly need to avoid defeat in Brisbane to retain any hope of winning the Ashes for the first time since 2015. They have not won a Test at the Gabba since 1986.
Australia’s only defeat in a day-night Test (a stunning eight-run win for the West Indies) came in Brisbane in January 2024.
The home team is expected to confirm its squad for the second test before the weekend.
Captain Pat Cummins could return after missing the first test as part of his recovery from a back injury. He has been bowling in Sydney with a pink ball.
Fellow bowler Josh Hazlewood has also been bowling in training but is not expected to return to Brisbane.
If Cummins returns, he would take the captaincy from Steve Smith and give the hosts the option of a full-tempo attack, replacing Nathan Lyon. If Lyon is retained, the decision would be between Scott Boland and Brendan Doggett.
Australia must also turn to Usman Khawaja, who suffered back spasms in Perth and was unable to open the batting. Travis Head took Khawaja’s place in the second innings and smashed one of the all-time Ashes greats to lead Australia to victory.
If Khawaja is left out, it would open the door for Josh Inglis, who was the reserve batsman in the team for the first Test and made a century for a Cricket Australia XI against the England Lions on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Perth pitch on which the first Test was played has been rated “very good” by the International Cricket Council.
A very good pitch is defined as having “good carry, limited seam movement, and consistent bounce early in the game, allowing for balanced competition between hitters and pitchers.”
The Perth Test was the first two-day Ashes match in 104 years.
