'We can win 5-0 for sure' - Nathan Lyon's audacious prediction for upcoming Ashes in England

The tug of war has already begun between the Australian and English camps ahead of their much-anticipated clash in the Ashes next month. Australia's veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon made a bold claim, backing his side to whitewash the home side in the upcoming five-match Test series.

Australia handed a chastening 4-0 series defeat to their arch-rivals in the 2021-22 Ashes and are eyeing back-to-back series success when they tour England in June this year. Although the Australian team has failed to win a Test series in England since 2001, star offie Nathan Lyon is confident of his side whitewashing the hosts.

"I do believe we can win 5-0, for sure. 100 per cent. There you go, there’s your headline. I’ve never gone into any game thinking that we’re never going to compete well and win the game. I know it’s a headline for you guys, but in my opinion and my view, every game I play for Australia, I’m going out there to win it. 

I’m confident heading over there. I think our squad should be really proud of the work that we’ve done over the last 24 months. I think it’s been an incredible journey and something that we should be really proud of," Lyon was quoted by The Age.

The best thing we can do is go out there and perform well and silence the crowd: Lyon

While Lyon admitted his prediction would ruffle a lot of English fans, he backed his team to do business in the high-profile series. The veteran spinner is also expecting great numbers in the stands, which contributes to the atmosphere in the iconic red-ball series. He wishes to replicate the performance of 2019 when Steve Smith helped the visitors silence the crowd with his glittering batting performance.

"I know I’m going to get a lot of feedback from the English fans … positive, negative, whatever it may be. That’s totally OK. At the end of the day, we’re going out there and we’re playing professional sport. Hopefully, they are going to be sold out and there’ll be a lot of loud crowds. The best thing we can do is go out there and perform well and silence the crowd," he added.