New Delhi, Nov 20 : Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has predicted that the hosts will clinch the upcoming five-match Ashes series 3-2 over England despite it being a close-fought contest.

Although Australia have retained the Ashes since 2018 and have been beaten by England in only four home Tests this century, Ponting says he still expects England to put up a strong fight in the five-match series Down Under.

"I don't think there'll be any draws, just the way that England play. If there's reasonable weather through the Australian summer, we know that the biggest concern for the last 15 years has been Sydney with the amount of days we've lost there," Ponting said in the latest episode of The ICC Review.

"Perth and Brisbane this time of year are normally great. So I don't foresee any drawn games and I just think it's going to be really, really close. So I'm going 3-2 Australia.

"The fact that there's no draws. I just think that's how potentially close it could be. And obviously I'm taking everything into account there as well. The fact that England have only won four Test matches in Australia this century and I'm predicting that they're going to win two in this series. So that's how much closer I think it could be," he added.

Ponting feels Englandâ??s chances will hinge heavily on the form of openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett, warning that Australiaâ??s attack can take control of the middle order if they strike early. He believes the pair need to take the game to Australiaâ??s fast bowlers from the outset to seize early momentum.

"I have had a bit of a look back through the last couple of years when England have played really good Test cricket and it's been on the back of some really good, fast, positive starts from their openers," Ponting noted.

"Because of the way that they play, they come out, they play their shots, they put pressure back on the opposition straight away and sometimes before you know, you look up at the scoreboard and they are none for 70 or 80 and you're sort of eight or 10 overs into the Test match.

"That's the way they'll need to do it again, I think in Australia. It won't be easy because the wickets in Perth and Brisbane if they happen to bat first anyway, which is not England's preferred style of playing.

"England always like to bat second if they can, but I just think if they don't get off to flying starts and Duckett and Crawley can't be consistent at the top of the order, it just puts so much more pressure on those middle-order players on (Joe) Root, on (Harry) Brook, on Ollie Pope, who we know hasn't got a great record in Australia either.

"And all of a sudden you might look up and Ben Stokes is in a whole lot earlier than what England would want him to be. So I think they (England openers) are crucial.

"Everyone will talk about Root and Brook and Stokes and the impact that they could have on this series. But if the openers don't get England off to a really good, solid, fast start, then the Australian bowlers could dominate and get into that middle-order nice and early with the newer Kookaburra ball and it could be exactly what Australia are

after."

/IANS