England players confident about Ashes prospects
Senior batsman Paul Collingwood feels England are well-equipped to retain the Ashes this winter in Australia providing they stick to the practices that have served them well over the last 18 months.
"We all know that Australia is a very good side. Whenever we have played against them they have always been competitive games and we are very much looking forward to going there and taking them on.
"Over the last 18 months we have managed to progress as a team. We have got a lot of confidence but also a lot of skill and I think if we stick to our strengths and stick together we should go well down there and be very competitive," Collingwood told England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB)'s official website.
Collingwood admitted he and many of his team-mates are spurred on by a desire to improve on their last Test series in Australia, where they slumped to a chastening 5-0 defeat.
"It is the most difficult place to win a series and I think the satisfaction of winning a series down there would pretty much be the ultimate. Everyone wants to be involved and have a chance of doing that.
"It's something that we've been thinking about for a long time now, pretty much since the last time we were over there when we got beaten 5-0.''
Leading pace bowler Stuart Broad too is willing to shoulder responsibility in the series. Broad, who played a pivotal role as England regained the urn at home last summer, is determined to taste victory again in his second Test series against Australia.
Broad played a part in England winning the Ashes in 2009 and since then the team have been impressive in all formats This has heightened hopes of a first Test victory Down Under since 1986/87 when Broad's father, Chris, was player of the series.
"It's a different proposition going to Australia and I think there's going to be expectation from back home for us to go and do well, but the expectation comes from within the changing room.
"I think we set ourselves really high standards and we back ourselves to execute our plans and go and do well," Broad opined in an interview to ECB's official website.
Fellow pace bowler James Anderson agreed with Broad that England have a magnificent opportunity to end their long search for victory on Australian soil.
"We've shown over the last few years that we've got the skills in the team to be able to win down there, so I think the major part of the tour will be the mental side.
"We've got to really be mentally strong, not just when we're playing the cricket, but also outside of cricket because we're not in our comfort zone, we're in another country," said Anderson.