Your guide to the Ashes

What you can look forward to – and how to make sure you enjoy yourself all tournament long.

The last Ashes series on home soil, in 2005, was unquestionably one of the greatest sporting contests of all time. If this one is even half as good you won’t want to miss a moment. And that means not drinking too much, whether you’re watching it live, at home or in the pub...

Cricket ground drinking

If you’re lucky enough to get tickets for the Ashes, you’re bound to be enticed by alcohol. Sitting in the sun (hopefully...) all day with a bar at easy reach, only a saint wouldn’t be tempted. You can even bring your own alcohol into Lord’s, although it’s limited to two pints of beer or a bottle of wine.

‘With the crowd we get, we don’t see alcohol as causing any problems,’ says Jeff Cards, the ground superintendent at Lord’s. ‘We’ve very rarely had any trouble as a result of spectators drinking.’

That may be the case but if you go overboard on the alcohol, forgetting to pace your drinks, it could spoil your day. Drinking for hours at a time, outside in the heat, can be a recipe for disaster. And it’s not just feeling dehydrated and possibly a bit sick you need to worry about.

What’s the point in buying Ashes tickets when you can't appreciate it fully because you’ve drunk too much?  The last thing you want is to miss the excitement because you’re feeling a bit woozy. And what if that crucial wicket that changes the destiny of the series falls while you’re at the bar or in the toilet? Replacing a few of those alcoholic drinks with a water or soft drink will help ensure you don't miss one of the day's highlights. 

‘When you think about it, you do spend ages queuing at the toilet or for drinks instead of watching the cricket,’ says Lord’s regular David Gyle. ‘I was at the Oval when England won the Ashes in 2005, and had a bit of a drink. I can remember the excitement, but I can’t remember the latter stages of the test very clearly!’

Drink less, miss less

It’s the same if you’re at home or in the pub watching the Ashes. That over you miss because you’re queuing for the loo could just be the one where Kevin Pietersen slogs consecutive sixes or Freddie Flintoff takes a hat-trick.

Casualty doctor Lucy Gordon says: ‘We see a lot of all day drinkers – whether they’ve been watching sports, or at festivals or at another event. A lot of people don’t realise how much they’ve drunk.

‘I always tell them – next time, slow down, have a glass of water for every alcoholic drink and make sure you eat plenty.’

Drinkaware’s motto this summer is Drink Less, Miss Less  –  keep it in mind to make sure you enjoy every moment of the Ashes 2009.

The Ashes: need to know information

It all kicks off on 8 July, and we’re in for six weeks of great cricket. With tests taking place in Cardiff, Birmingham, Leeds and London, fans all over the country will have the chance to watch world class cricket on their doorstep. Or you can get your mates round to your house or the pub and check out the TV coverage.

Can England beat the Aussies? Australia have won 31 times to England’s 28, so we’ve got some catching up to do. We’ve got some dignity to regain too, what with Australia’s 5-0 whitewash in 2006/7 – our worst defeat since 1920/21.

However, the Aussies are still smarting from their defeat in 2005. We can expect another titanic contest, but captain Andrew Strauss is quietly confident.

‘We're in a very good place,’ he said in a recent interview . ‘If we use the conditions well I think we've got a really good chance... I feel calm and prepared. I'm ready for it.’

The Ashes: 5 fast facts

1. The name ‘the Ashes’ comes from an article published in The Sporting Times newspaper in 1882, after Australia beat England. It said English cricket had died, and the body would be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. The English media then dubbed the next English tour to Australia as ‘the quest to regain The Ashes’.

2. Australians have made 264 centuries in Ashes tests, 23 of them over 200, while the English have scored 212 centuries, of which 10 have been scores over 200.

3. Australia held the Ashes for a whopping 16 years from 1989 to 2005.

4. Shane Warne is the leading wicket taker in Ashes history with 172, while Don Bradman is the top run scorer with 5,028.

5. There was no official trophy for the team who won the Ashes until 1998/99, when a Waterford Crystal one was presented. Before that, the winning team often got a replica of an urn given to England captain Ivo Bligh on his team’s 1882 tour of Australia. The real urn is in Lord’s museum.

Ashes dates

1st Test, 8–12 July, Cardiff
2nd Test, 16–20 July, Lord’s
3rd Test, 30 July–3 Aug, Edgbaston
4th Test, 7–11 Aug, Headingley
5th Test, 20–24 Aug, the Oval

Win tickets to the Ashes at Edgbaston on Saturday 1 August by entering our competition.

To win signed cricket whites worn by James Anderson visit the Sky Sports website