“I do believe we can win 5-0, for sure" - Nathan Lyon makes a bold proclamation for The Ashes  

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon is confident of his team's chances of executing a whitewash in the ongoing Ashes series. The hosts are 1-0 up in the series following a dominant 9-wicket win at The Gabba.

Lyon recently scalped his 400th Test wicket after a long wait. The 34-year-old became only the third bowler from Australia to achieve this feat. His four-wicket haul in the second innings triggered a collapse in England's second innings and paved the way for a relatively comfortable win.

Speaking to The Herald and The Age ahead of the day-night Test in Adelaide, Lyon said:

“I do believe we can win 5-0 ... for sure. “I’ve never walked into a Test series thinking I’m going to go in there and lose a game. We’ll do everything we can. If we prepare well and play the right positive brand of cricket under our new captain, there’s no reason why we can’t win 5-0."

Lyon added:

“In saying that, England’s a classy outfit, and they’re going to challenge us here and there. With two pink-ball games now, we’re going to make sure we’re totally on our game.”

The Blundstone Arena in Hobart has been handed over the hosting rights for the fifth Test. It marks the first time that the Tasmanian capital will host an Ashes encounter. Much like the second Test in Adelaide, the final Test of the series will also be played with a pink ball.

Whether they play a spinner or not, that’s not up to me: Lyon

The spinner opposite Lyon's camp, Jack Leach, endured a horrid outing in the first Test. The likes of David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne attacked the left-arm spinner from the word go, which has led to speculation that England might drop the player and opt for an all-pace attack.

The 34-year-old, who began his cricketing journey as part of the Adelaide Oval's ground staff team, notes that a spinner is necessary on that surface. He added:

“I’m always happy to play a spinner on no matter what wicket. The way I look at Test cricket, you just can’t pick your team for the first session of the Test. Test cricket is a long, challenging game, but I am expecting [Stuart] Broad and [Jimmy] Anderson to play."

“Whether they play a spinner or not, that’s not up to me. It is challenging but no doubt he’s a class bowler and he’ll bounce back. He’ll do his work and we need to make sure Australia is prepared. I don’t know what the Adelaide wicket is going to look like but I can guarantee it’ll be a cracking wicket in my eyes.”

Australia are battling an injury crisis of their own with Josh Hazlewood and David Warner doubtful for the second Test. Jhye Richardson and Michael Neser will compete for Hazlewood's spot while Warner is likely to be replaced by Usman Khawaja.