“It’s a Huge Series For England” – Sidebottom Sees India Test as the True Ashes Benchmark

Noah Heydon | 12:56am BST 27 June 2025

As England are now underway in what will be a blockbuster five-match Test series against India, former international Ryan Sidebottom believes this summer’s challenge could prove an even sterner examination than their Ashes opponents later this year.

While the cricketing calendar often revolves around the prestige of facing Australia, Sidebottom sees the fast-approaching India series as a defining moment for England’s red-ball ambitions.

“You would argue India might be slightly stronger than Australia… a little bit,” he told the cricket betting team at BoyleSports when asked whether the current Test side should have one eye on the 2025/26 Ashes tour beginning in November. “But you have to play what’s in front of you. You can’t look too far ahead otherwise that will catch you out very quickly.

“Take each test match, each day as it comes. If you take care of that, then the cricket eventually, over time and in Australia, will take care of itself.”

For Sidebottom, England’s current side must treat the India series as its own challenge – not just a warm-up. The timing and quality of opposition, he says, make it a bigger indicator of where England stands.

“This is a huge, huge series for England. It’s a big series for a number of players, especially in the batting line-up.

“There’s been a number talking about Zak Crawley, his inconsistencies. He scores a big 200, 300, but then gets low scores. Is he a little bit too attacking? 

“I think we have the batting line-up to take on any wonderful bowling attack. The only thing I worry about is England’s bowling attack in Australia. Again, it’s quite inexperienced. So if they do well in this series, whoever stands up and is counted, that will bode well for Australia. 

“They’ll be very confident going into the Ashes series. But, again, a big Test series, huge for England. How they perform will earmark how they perform in Australia.”

Sidebottom sees the India series as the tougher of the two. While he acknowledges the historic weight of the Ashes, he believes the present challenge of India’s quality bowling and dynamic young players is not to be underestimated.

“With the loss of Jimmy (Anderson) and Stuart Broad in the bowling attack, is it now, especially if you’re missing Mark Wood through injury or a Chris Woakes, a young, inexperienced attack?

“But then you could argue India has lost a lot of the global superstars in terms of their batting line-up. So I think it’s going to be a hugely intriguing Test series.

“Who will come out on top? I think who bats the best. I think, arguably, England are stronger on home soil batting-wise. But then I look at India’s bowling attack. They’ve got a wonderful bowling attack compared to England in terms of experience.

“Siraj, Bumrah, they have an all-round experienced attack. Shardul Thakur, too, who did very well in a Test series over here last time but unfortunately got injured.

“KL Rahul is a wonderful player. But then you’ve got the inexperience of a wonderfully, amazingly talented batting line-up. So how are the two line-ups going to compare? I think it’s going to be a wonderful, wonderful Test series.

“Who’s going to come out on top? I think, for me, India might just shade it with their bowling attack.”

Among those who India have in England are names that Sidebottom sees as major threats.

“You’ve got (Yashasvi) Jaiswal, who’s a wonderful cricketer, who’s going to be over in the Test series, very attacking.

“You’ve got (Rishabh) Pant, who’s come back into the set-up after a long lay-off through injury. India have such a strong line-up again and it’s almost like these superstars in India already, are newcomers coming over to England.

“Can they handle the moving ball? Can they handle England’s conditions? If they can, I would say India just pip it in terms of the players and the talent.”

Yet the real challenge, Sidebottom believes, lies in temperament – particularly for England under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.

“When England get on top and they get on a roll, they’re wonderful to watch. They’re very entertaining, aren’t they? The only thing I worry about England during this Test series is how they play that attacking style of cricket.

“The sort of ‘Bazball’ that actually Brendan McCullum doesn’t like talking about. But sometimes you have to play the situation. You have to play the occasion. And sometimes England, they lose a lot of wickets in clumps, don’t they? Because they’re so gun-ho and they think ‘we’re going to attack ourselves out of this situation.’

“You’re still playing Test cricket. It’s still five days. You can back time. You can stay in the middle. You can gut it out. Who does that the best? I think whoever does out of the two teams will certainly win the Test series.”

And as for Sidebottom himself? He’ll be following the series closely from inside the grounds.

“With what’s ahead, for me, I am so excited for this Test series against India. I love the T20 Blast, the IPL, and it’s growing the game, from a women’s perspective and the mens’ game. 

“However, I love Test cricket, it’s a test for a reason and I say it all the time; it tests you mentally, physically. Can you focus for five days and be consistent? It is just huge for England, it’s huge for the players. If you play well in this series, the momentum will stick with you moving forward into the Ashes.

“I’ll be there at every Test, every day and I’ll be glued from the stands watching very closely who performs!”

For Ryan Sidebottom, this series is far more than a warm-up – it’s a true measure of England’s credentials. And they’ll need to be at their very best.