Hazlewood out to prove Ashes point

Nov 20, 2017 - 8:06 AM Regarded as the best fast bowler in the world by one teammate, Josh Hazlewood still feels he has a point to prove in the looming Ashes series.

Test spinner Nathan Lyon was glowing in praise for Hazlewood ahead of the first Test in Brisbane from Thursday, rating him the world's No.1 speedster "by a long way".

But after falling short in the UK two years ago, Hazlewood wants to show England he can be a force to be reckoned with.

Hazlewood's relentless line and length made him perfectly equipped to exploit English conditions on Ashes debut in 2015.

And on paper his series return of 16 wickets at 25.75 look impressive.

However, Hazlewood struggled to find his rhythm and control with the Dukes ball and was criticised for failing to step up with the series on the line in Australia's embarrassing fourth Test rout at Trent Bridge.

By the fifth and final Test, a burnt-out Hazlewood was sent home as Australia sealed a convincing win at The Oval but lost the series 3-2.

"Watching them celebrate after Trent Bridge last time, it definitely drives you for next time," Hazlewood said of 2015.

"It's pretty vivid in the imagination."

Hazlewood admitted the Ashes cauldron came as a rude shock.

"It probably snuck up on me a bit, heading into that series with only half a dozen Tests under my belt," he said.

"It snuck up a bit, how big the Ashes actually is.

"I'm a lot more ready this time."

Hazlewood, 26, may feel like he has something to prove but Lyon is already a believer.

All eyes may be on Pat Cummins before combining with Mitchell Starc in his maiden home Test but Lyon believed Hazlewood was the star attraction.

"I think Josh Hazlewood in my book is the best fast bowler in the world and by a long way," he said of Hazlewood, who has 118 scalps at 25.75 from 31 Tests.

"He can do anything. I haven't seen a bowler who's got that control in a long time."

Hazlewood may have succumbed to fatigue in 2015 but the quick said he was ready for a five-Test Ashes despite being armed with just one first-class game this summer.

Coming back from a side strain suffered on September's tour of Bangladesh, NSW's Hazlewood played a Sheffield Shield game against Western Australia two weeks ago.

"If I showed any sort of rustiness (against WA)... I definitely would have played (another Shield game) but I hit the ground running," he said.

Source: AAP