5 modern players who made their name through their Ashes exploits

England against Australia has produced some fantastic Test battles over the years. We’ve seen countless players stand up in an Ashes series, and we’ve also seen many fail to hit any great heights in the pressure cooker environment and fade away into obscurity. For the players who excel at this level though, fame and respect amongst the cricketing world is almost a given.The 5 players who made this list certainly stood up in the Ashes and delivered some memorable performances, cementing themselves as household names. Here they are:

#1 Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen was one of England’s most exciting batsmen ever

When a young Kevin Pietersen strolled out for his debut Test series against the all conquering Australians in 2005, complete with a blonde mohawk and his trademark cocky persona, few would have predicted the star he would become.

After back-to-back fifties in his first Test and a spectacular maiden ton in the Fifth Test at the Oval, KP quickly became a household name. Kicking on from his brilliant Ashes antics, the big-hitting right-hander became one of England’s greatest ever Test cricketers, scoring over 8,000 runs at 47.28 in 104 matches, with 23 centuries and 35 fifties.

He continued to terrorise Australia for the length of his Test career, scoring 4 tons against them including his highest Test score of 227.

#2 Ricky Ponting

Ricky Ponting always went up a gear while playing in an Ashes series

As one of Australia’s finest Test cricketers, Ricky Ponting is best remembered for his Ashes heroics. Ponting formally announced his arrival on the Test scene in his first Ashes series, with his maiden Test ton of 127 coming at Headingley in 1997.

From there, nothing would stop the Tasmanian legend, compiling over 13,000 Test runs at an average of 51.85 in a sparkling career. Ponting chalked up 41 Test centuries – the second most in history, only behind Sachin Tendulkar.

From his 8 Ashes centuries, his finest was the gritty, fighting 156 he made in the 2005 series to help Australia salvage a draw. A sensational leader, Ponting captained Australia to the 2006/07 series whitewash.

#3 Steven Smith

Steven Smith seems to plunder runs at will when playing against England

Currently, the world’s number 1 ranked Test batsman, it took a while for Steven Smith to find his feet at Test level. After a two-year exile from the Test side, Smith finally broke the shackles in the 2013 Ashes series with his maiden Test century at the Oval, hitting a six off Johnathon Trott to bring it up in style.

Following this breakthrough, he scored another two Test centuries against England in the return series in Australia and a star was born, with Smith barely putting a foot wrong since. With a sensational Test record against England with 3 centuries and 3 fifties, Smith will be hoping to continue his good form in the upcoming Ashes series.

#4 Andrew Flintoff

Freddie Flintoff was a fine all-rounder

Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff always seemed to go up a gear whenever he played against Australia, delivering inspired performances in both the 2005 and 2009 Ashes series to help England regain the urn both times.

An entertaining and exciting cricketer, Flintoff produced some of his Test-best figures with both bat and ball against Australia, scoring 102 at Trent Bridge in 2005, and taking 5/78 at The Oval in the same year.

He also etched his name onto the Lord’s honour board in 2009, with another 5 wicket haul against the Aussies. Along with his name-making achievements, Flintoff also experienced the lows of an Ashes series, captaining the English side in 2006/07 when they were beaten 5-0 in Australia.

#5 Michael Vaughan

Vaughan playing a trademark cover drive

Perhaps England’s finest captain, the elegant right-hander relished the challenge of playing in an Ashes series. In a career with many highlights, it is for his Ashes brilliance that Vaughan is best remembered.

Vaughan averaged a whopping 47.95 in Tests against Australia, scoring 4 centuries and one fifty with a highest score of 183. His best performance came in the 2002/03 Ashes series, in which he scored 633 runs with 3 tons, and was subsequently ranked one of the best batsmen in the world.

Incredibly, Vaughan passed 140 in each of his Test centuries against Australia, proving a hard man to remove from the crease. Vaughan was also the man at the helm of the awesome 2005 Ashes series win, a career highlight for the opening batsman.