Ashes 2023 has potential to 'define this Australian cricket era': Nathan Lyon

Veteran Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon believes the Aussies have a massive opportunity to win the Ashes on English soil for the first time since 2001. He also feels that could define the current team and their era of domination.

Australia came pretty close to winning the Ashes back in 2019 under the leadership of Tim Paine. While they managed to retain the Urn, England won the final Test and levelled the series 2-2.

Speaking in a video posted by cricket.com.au on Instagram, here's what Nathan Lyon had to say ahead of Ashes 2023:

"To have not won the Ashes here in 21 years, I feel this has the potential to define this Australian cricket era and this team. Our goal is to become one of the greatest Australian cricket teams and I think that should be the goal for each and every player."

---

We are a better team than what we were in 2019 Ashes: Marnus Labuschagne

Australian star batter Marnus Labuschagne, meanwhile, believes Australia were the better team when they levelled the series in England last time around. He feels the team is motivated to learn from the mistakes and ensure they get the job done this time around.

Speaking in the aforementioned video, he stated:

"We just let it slip at The Oval. We still were the better team despite losing at Headingley and I feel we played better cricket throughout the series. The learning from that is to be on and finish the job.

"We are a better team than what we were in 2019. We are more settled and everyone knows their role and we are confident in each other's ability and methods."

Australian opener Usman Khawaja was also present in the video and he spoke about how England captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum have reinvented the way they play Test cricket. He added:

"If you would have told me a year ago that we were coming here, I would have been confident. Their batting wasn't clicking and they just didn't seem sure. But Stokesy and Brendon McCullum brought their team a lot of clarity which can be dangerous if you get a bit of momentum. But five Tests is a long time so we will do our best to break them down."

The first Ashes 2023 Test will get underway in Edgbaston on Friday, June 16.