None of the Test matches to end as a draw –

Both these sides’ tendency to blow hot and cold means there hasn’t been a single draw in either of the last two series.

Given neither team has fully addressed those vulnerabilities, don’t be surprised if that sequence continues.

Either team to be bowled out for under 100 –

A quirk that’s in England’s favour.

The Poms have dismissed Australia for 98 and 60 in the last four series.

But, as the price suggests, both sides are bad enough for it to happen to them this time.

First ball of the series to be a wide –

We all remember Steve Harmison sending the first ball of the 2006/07 series straight to second slip.

James Anderson is above letting his emotions get the better of him in the same way. But, Mitchell Starc, with all his talk of terrorising the Poms, might not be.

Stuart Broad to take his 400^th Test wicket in the first Test –

Broad has been England’s best bowler in both Ashes series he has played since taking on the role of Australia’s favourite pantomime villain.

He took eight wickets the last time he played at the Gabba, so getting the 12 more he needs to break yet another milestone is certainly not out of the question.

Stuart Broad to take eight or more wickets in a single innings –

Broad has plenty of previous when it comes to tearing through the Aussies, with decisive spells of 5-37 at the Oval in 2009, 6-50 at Durham in 2013 and 8-15 at Trent Bridge in 2015.

When he gets his adrenaline pumping, nobody and nothing can stop him.

No England player to score a century in the series –

England’s one and only century on their previous tour to Australia was scored by Ben Stokes. Which is a problem.

The tourists’ batting line-up is fragile and inexperienced, and it’s unclear who might step up in his absence.

Joe Root to average over 50 but not score a century in the series –

Since the start of the 2016, Root has scored fewer than one century every five Test matches, and been dismissed 12 times between 50 and 100.

He should, of course, flourish, but his conversion rate is poor enough to back this one at a good price.

Moeen Ali to take a 5-fer and score a century in the same Test match –

Of Moeen’s four Test match 5-fers, two came last summer, against South Africa.

Australia will take risks against his off-spin bowling, which increases his wicket-taking potential.

He would, however, have to break his duck of Test centuries against non-subcontinental teams for this one to come in.

Alastair Cook to surpass his 2010/11 run tally (766) –

Can Cook’s seemingly-insurmountable 2010/11 run haul be surmounted?

Considering that he hasn’t scored an Ashes century – averaging 29 – since that series, perhaps not by the man himself.

But…

Joe Root to surpass Alastair Cook’s 2010/11 run tally (766) –

It’s difficult to imagine England standing a chance without a stellar Root performance across the series.

In his first five Tests this summer, Root scored 597 runs. To beat Cook’s tally, a few more of those 50s need to turn into 100s this winter.

Mark Stoneman to outscore Alastair Cook across the whole series –

Andrew Strauss retired five years and 11 openers ago, and finally a replacement left-hander is emerging to partner Cook.

Yes, Stoneman has hit just one half-century in actual Test matches so far, but he’s passed 50 in every warm-up match, and and turned one of them into a century this week.

Paul Collingwood to be named in England’s starting XI in any of the Test matches –

Paul Collingwood might swear he’s travelled with no kit, and that he’s only in Australia to coach, but we like to think the glint in his eye is telling us a different story.

Weird things happen when Ashes tours derail. And Collingwood did, after all, average 14 more than England’s starting No.3, James Vince, last summer.

Any Test to be decided by fewer than 10 runs or one wicket –

Edgbaston 2005 has gone down in folklore, but Monty’s last stand in 2009 and Jimmy’s DRS in 2013 are just two examples of other Ashes Tests that have gone down to the wire in recent years.

Don’t rule out two evenly-matched and inconsistent sides putting us through the ringer once again.

Either team to win any Test match following on –

Having only occurred in 1894, 1981 and 2001, the rate of such victories is precisely one per century.

Such is the nature of the two unpredictable sides, however, that they are capable of inventing some extraordinary ways to lose.

Hat-trick to be taken on day one of the first Test –

It’s happened before, and not that long ago, with Peter Siddle taking three wickets in three balls at the Gabba in 2010.

Two of his victims that day – Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad – are still playing now, so who’s to say it can’t happen again?

Hat-trick to be taken at any time in the series –

There were a total of 24 hat-trick balls in Ashes Test matches between Darren Gough’s treble in 1999 and Siddle’s in 2010.

There have been 12 more since – including six on England’s most recent visit – so we must be due another soon.

Substitute fielder to inflict a run out at any stage –

Gary Pratt was overlooked this time, but – believe it or not – other substitutes are allowed to do this.

Piers Morgan to call for the reinstatement of Kevin Pietersen –

Even Kevin Pietersen surely doesn’t believe that Kevin Pietersen should play for England this winter, having not played a first-class match for two-and-a-half years.

Whether Kevin Pietersen’s social media executive agrees, however, is a different matter entirely.

One team to win all five tosses –

Maths, and that.