SYDNEY: Australia spinner Nathan Lyon on Thursday said he is expecting England to send its full-strength squad to Australia for the Ashes.
"I think that shows the passion between the two nations, and it's the pinnacle as an Australian cricketer to play in the Ashes series. So no doubt there will be some comments flying around and creating a bit of theatre, which I'm all for, so it should be good fun," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Lyon as saying.
"I'm expecting England to come out pretty well full-strength. Ashes series make people's careers, so if people don't come out and someone comes out and has an absolute blinder of an Ashes series, that really sets their careers up. I know if I was in their shoes I'd be putting both hands up for selection and coming on that tour," he added.
Over the weekend, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had contacted its men's players and management to provide them with the latest information about the proposed arrangements for this winter's scheduled Ashes tour.
"We remain in regular and positive dialogue with Cricket Australia over these arrangements as the picture is constantly evolving. With health and wellbeing at the forefront, our focus is to ensure the tour can go ahead with conditions for players and management to perform at their best," ECB had said in an official statement.
"We will continue talking to our players this week to share the latest information and seek feedback," it added. Later this week, the ECB Board will meet to decide whether the conditions in place are sufficient for the tour to go ahead and enable the selection of a squad befitting a series of this significance.
Earlier, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had made an intervention in order to ensure that the upcoming Ashes series against Australia goes ahead later this year as planned. Johnson raised the issue of a travel ban on the families of England's cricketers with Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Both Prime Ministers met over dinner on a diplomatic visit to Washington DC.
Ashes continues to remain in doubt after a number of England players raised concerns about strict quarantine protocols they are likely to be in for the duration of the tour. The Ashes between England and Australia is set to commence on December 8 in Brisbane.