England's best Ashes XI from the 21st century

Graeme Swann

Graeme Swann

Since the turn of the century, English spinners have traditionally struggled against the might of the Australian batting line-up and have had to toil hard with little to no gains, especially Down Under. Graeme Swann, however, was an exception.

Although his bowling average of nearly 40 against Australia is not particularly flattering, Swann had his purple patches. A fifer in Adelaide that helped England emerge victorious by an innings and a couple of fifers in the 2013 Ashes are notable highlights of his career.

Moreover, Swann's batting numbers against the bitter rivals are quite handsome for a No. 9. He averaged 23.76 in the Ashes while batting in the tail, compiling 499 runs at a sublime S/R of nearly 85. Handy, indeed.

Stuart Broad

England v Australia: 4th Investec Ashes Test - Day Three

Stuart Broad is England's second greatest bowler to grace the format, in terms of wickets taken. Broad has penned down some fascinating tales in the last decade or so. A deadly maestro with the new red cherry in hand, Broad has ripped through the Australian batting lineup numerous times in his career.

Who can forget his whirlwind spell at Trent Bridge 2015, when he scalped an unreal 8 wickets for 15 runs and single-handedly bundled out the Aussies on a mere 60? The 33-year-old pacer from Nottingham has 100 Ashes wickets to his name from the 28 games that he has played.