England's best Ashes XI from the 21st century

Since the early 1880s, several sporting icons have taken center stage as far as Ashes cricket is concerned. Many prestigious players have come and gone, whose names have been emblazoned in the competition's hall of fame.

Since the turn of this century, however, a cut-throat aura has encircled the event as the Ashes has taken a fierce turn into a new age. The dawn of this century has seen the making of gallant cricketers who have taken the world by storm with their aggressive approach and brought greater context to this illustrious trophy and its legacy.

Here, we look at the 11 best Ashes cricketers to have represented England since the start of the century. These are players who not only played crucial roles in leading their respective sides to Ashes glory, but also took the assault to Australia - something we rarely witnessed in the 90s

Andrew Strauss (vice-captain)

Andrew Strauss

Andrew Strauss is one of the finest Test openers England has produced in recent times. Apart from being highly competitive at the top of the order, Strauss was also a very tactically astute skipper.

Under his leadership England triumphed in two Ashes, the more notable being the one Down Under in 2010-11 where he outsmarted Ricky Ponting's XI and cruised home with a memorable 3-1 win.

Strauss has four Ashes tons to his name, and he scored at an impressive average of 39.5 in the 20 Ashes games that he featured in.

Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook

Knighted in honor of his immense services to English cricket, Alastair Cook is England's leading run-scorer in the format and one of the greats of the game. Graham Gooch held the record for the most Test runs for England for nearly 12 years before Cook surpassed his tally.

His dream moment came in the 2010 Ashes Down Under when he amassed a staggering 766 runs at an unreal average of over 127. Overall, Cook has scored nearly 2,500 runs versus the arch-rivals at a good average of 40.20.

Michael Vaughan (captain)

Michael Vaughan

It was Michael Vaughan who took the reins and led from the front in the 2005 Ashes which ultimately entered cricketing folklore. His strategic superiority over his counterpart Ricky Ponting proved to be a huge factor in one of the greatest Test series ever contested in the game's history, and helped bring the remnants of the urn back to English soil for the first time since 1986-87.

Vaughan's record with the willow in hand against the Aussies was quite brilliant too; he averaged just a shade under 48 with 959 runs from the 10 games he represented the Poms in.

Jonathan Trott

Jonathan Trott

Jonathan Trott was a classic No. 3 batsman with fluid wrists and a sound technique that oozed elegance.

Trott played a pivotal role in England's rise as a Test force in the early years of this decade. Blessed with immaculate hand-eye coordination and an even better technique, Trott was also exceptionally strong with his temperament and often proved to be a wall in the middle order.

He was part of two Ashes-winning English sides, and his figures against Australia demand applause: 917 runs in 12 games at 48.26 with three centuries to his name.

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen was the rockstar of the noughties for English cricket, the heartbeat of the English cricketing fraternity, the wizard who changed the nature of English batting from that of an old woman pushing along a shopping trolley to a racing car turning around bends dangerously.

Pietersen represented England in 27 Ashes Tests, compiling his runs at an average of 45. But it was his swashbuckling approach and ferocity that he brought to the turf that terrorized the Aussies for years.

Pietersen's highest Test score of 227 also came against Australia, in what was a stunning display of batsmanship at Adelaide, back in 2010.

Matt Prior

Matt Prior was a sound wicketkeeper

Matt Prior rose to international stardom after striking a dazzling hundred against the Windies. Over the course of his Test career, he constantly displayed a certain belligerence in his approach to the game.

Prior was someone who would walk in and take the game away from the opposition within mere minutes through his dashing strokeplay. He participated in three Ashes-winning English campaigns and was equally good behind the stumps, affecting 63 Australian dismissals throughout his career - the second highest by an English wicketkeeper.

Andrew Flintoff

Andrew Flintoff

England's very own wonder-boy is the man many believed single-handedly won them the bitterly-fought Ashes of 2005. There are not many players who made as strong an impact as Andrew Flintoff did in that summer; he quite possibly turned around the fortunes of English cricket.

He took the assault to the likes of Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Brett Lee, Shane Warne and didn't bat an eyelid. His clinical role in the Ashes wins of 2005 and 2009 will forever be cherished in the history books of the competition.

Flintoff averaged 33, both with the bat and the ball, against the Aussies. But records hardly depict the situations where he would rush in out of the blue, and turn the game on its head with minimal fuss.

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.

Chris Tremlett

Chris Tremlett

This is a controversial selection given Chris Tremlett only appeared in 4 Ashes Tests throughout his injury-stricken career. But the giant was a compelling choice considering the other options were Steve Harmison and Matthew Hoggard, both of whom averaged round about the 40-run mark with the ball.

Moreover, Tremlett's pivotal role in the historic Ashes triumph Down Under can never be undermined. He took a total of 17 wickets in the three games that he represented England in that series.

Tremlett wreaked havoc with a short-ball barrage and used his extravagant height to full advantage, leaving the Aussies clueless in their own backyard.

James Anderson

James Anderson

Does the name even need any introduction? It's safe to say James Anderson would have made any Ashes XI, starting from the early 1880s, when the competition was first conceived.

Anderson is not only England's highest wicket-taker both in the Ashes since the 21st century and on the all-time wicket-takers' list, but he also has the most wickets (575) for a fast-bowler in the history of the format. That's a remarkable achievement, yes, but what is even more bizarre is that he is still playing at 37 years young, and still displaying his wizardry with the Dukes ball.

Over the years, Anderson has won many Ashes games for England, the most notable being the thriller at Trent Bridge in 2013 where he took fifers in both innings to take England through. He has been part of four English sides that have had the privilege of bagging the highly sought urn.