England Open White-Ball Tour of Australia as Sandpaper Row Resurfaces

England start a white-ball tour of Australia on Friday, 13 November, with three one-day internationals (ODIs, 50 overs a side) followed by five Twenty20 internationals (T20s, 20 overs a side). Harry Brook is leading the team, and Brendon McCullum remains England's head coach in limited-overs cricket.

The tour takes England back to Perth and Optus Stadium, the ground where they lost the first Ashes Test of November 2025 inside two days. The Guardian reports that Travis Head starred for Australia in that match. A year on, the defeat is still fresh for England supporters, even though the new contests are shorter and different in shape.

Off the field, the loudest talk in Australia is about the past. Usman Khawaja's autobiography, Sabr, has brought the 2018 sandpaper ball-tampering scandal back into the news. In that affair, Australian players were caught trying to alter the ball's surface, and several were banned. Cricket Australia has ruled out reopening its investigation into the saga.

There is also a personal milestone for England. Joe Root was set to play his 200th ODI during the tour week, a figure few players in the history of the men's game have reached.

For casual fans, the format matters. A 50-over match gives each side time to build an innings and recover from a bad spell. A T20 is over in about three hours, so a single hot over can swing it. Five T20s in a row means England will have little time to dwell on any one result.

The first ODI is the next step. Whether the tour resolves anything about the Ashes, or simply gives both sides a fresh start, will depend on the cricket played over the coming weeks.