Michael Vaughan
Ex-England captain on BBC Test Match Special

England need to find a three and not move Joe Root up. Australia will want England's two best batsmen - Root and Cook - exposed to the new ball as early as possible.

I think somebody who has not been mentioned and who could bat at three is James Vince. If somebody bowls a half-volley, he'll put it away. I worry about Keaton Jennings' mindset. He's had such a tough summer.

Graeme Swann
Ex-England spinner on BBC Test Match Special

Root needs to get up the order to three. England need somebody scoring heavily in their top three, like Michael Vaughan and Alastair Cook have done in recent years.

The majority of reports indicate that James Vince is set for a recall at number three, replacing Tom Westley who is the current incumbent.

Westley got a thwack on the thumb during Essex's county match against Yorkshire on Monday, but it's a bruise rather than a break and it seems his 24.12 average after five Tests has counted against him.

Not that Vince has done much more to inspire confidence. He has a first-class average this year of 34.82, with two centuries, and scored 212 in his combined seven Test outings. He's also got a propensity to nick off, but his technique may be more suited to Australia.

Gary Ballance was in possession of the spot before he broke a finger, and he made his Test debut in Sydney in 2014, but there are questions about his technique. Again, a move up for Joe Root would be a logical step, but that means he's likely to be exposed to the new ball early.

Image source, Getty Images

Andrew Dennett: Not impressed if that's the Ashes squad. Why Ballance?! Who is Ben Foakes? A lot will rest on Cook, Root, Broad and Anderson!

David Wallace: What a saga! I can't recall one like it in 70 years of following the Ashes. Nearest was Alec Bedser in pre Ashes shingles scare.

England's batting line-up has got more holes in than a chunk of Swiss cheese, starting right up at the top of the order.

Since 2012, Cook has seen 12 different batsmen standing down at the opposite end, and still no-one's sure who is the best fella for the job.

By all accounts, Mark Stoneman will be the man in possession when November rolls around. He opened in the three Tests against West Indies, but scored just 120 runs in five innings at an average of 30.

An unbeaten 40 at The Oval will have pressed his case, as will other circumstances - Lancashire's Haseeb Hameed broke a finger just as he was finding form, although a winter break may do the youngster some good after his post-India struggles.

Keaton Jennings, partner number 11, is another option. But after scoring 128 runs in eight innings against South Africa he's struggled in country cricket, making a highest first-class score of just 17 since.

There are other options: Alex Hales, opener number eight who averaged 27.28, Sam Robson, or maybe a shunt up the order for Joe Root. Which didn't go that well last time in Oz.

Image source, Getty Images

This, from our cricket man Stephan Shemlit, is a fairly succinct summing up of things.

Some reports are already claiming to have a ‘leaked’ squad. It looks like this:

Joe Root, Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman, Dawid Malan, Gary Ballance, James Vince, Moeen Ali, Mason Crane, Ben Foakes, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Jake Ball, Craig Overton.

What do you reckon? We'll find out in 35 minutes.

BBC commentator Kevin Howells: Lovely hug for Craig Overton this morning from Matt Maynard. Must get that every time he bowls well or am I missing something?

If I could use that innocent emoji face, I would do...

Image source, Twitter

Kevin Pietersen's had his say on Stokes...

Image source, Twitter

Right. Ben Stokes. It's been an, er, eventful few days for him.

But should he go to Australia? And if he does, should it be as vice-captain? You can vote on the side of this page. You've got until 11:30 BST.

You can also tweet us your thoughts on Stokes and any general Ashes malarkey by using #bbccricket on Twitter, or by texting 81111. Have a rant with me. It'll make you feel better.

Stokes might not make it to Australia for the start of the series, as The Sun are reporting that he has suffered a suspected broken hand after being arrested on suspicion of assault.

According to the paper, the all-rounder had an X-ray, external on his right hand yesterday.

Any break would keep him out for 12 weeks - which means he'd almost certainly miss the first two Ashes Tests.

The paper are also reporting that he's facing being stripped of the vice-captaincy.

Image source, The Sun

There's pictures of Stokes looking stressed all over the back pages this morning.

The Guardian reports, external that Andrew Strauss met Stokes in Bristol on Monday evening after he was released, and the ECB will launch their own investigation into what happened and any potential disciplines.

Image source, Guardian

The Daily Express are also reporting that Stokes could lose the Test vice-captaincy.

Image source, Express

Hiya! Right, there's some fairly obvious distractions around today's squad announcement. First up, a look at the back pages...

James Vince? Gary Ballance? Adil Rashid?

Who goes to Australia, who plays, and who stays at home?