Twenty years on, and still the ghosts of Bob, Both and the Kirkstall Lane end haunt English cricket. For the talk this week hasn't been dominated by how England can avoid a 5-0 whitewash at the hands of the Australians, but how drop-dead-gorgeously wonderful Headingley '81 was. The Australians, however, won't be bothered by all the feel-good wallowing. In fact they seem unlikely to be knocked off course by anything this tour - Steve Waugh's injury, Ricky Ponting's lack of runs, even the theft of their gear from the Sussex dressing-room last weekend.

Adam Gilchrist will replace Steve Waugh as the driver of the juggernaut. He's done it once before, against West Indies at Adelaide, a game that Australia (naturally) won. He did , though, only score 19 runs in the match – some succour for England but a juicy kick for Gilchrist. "There's a whole lot of incentives and desires driving us on," he said. "Mine is to succeed without Steve's leadership." The man to pick up Steve Waugh's heavy batting mantle is Simon Katich, who will make his Test debut. He is a hugely gifted left-hander from Perth who has been on the tip of Australian tongues for years, but his Test chances have been thwarted by chickenpox, Waugh's amazing powers of recovery and a mystery virus. He has endured it all with a merry fortitude, so the Aussies will have to get used to Happy Man in their middle order rather than Ice Man. He will bat at No. 6, and Damien Martyn is promoted to No. 5.

England go to Leeds, brow-beaten but hoping for inspiration at the ground where they beat West Indies in two days last year. Hussain was captain then, and he returns to the side tomorrow for the first time since the first Test at Edgbaston over a month ago. Usman Afzaal is back too. This is an enormous match for him - it may be his last chance to pay back the selectors for their faith before the big guns Michael Vaughan and Graham Thorpe swan back for the final Test. The final bowling spot is likely to go to Alan Mullally because of the extra variety he gives Hussain - though he doesn't do much for the wagginess of the tail. He has been in good form this season - 47 first-class wickets at 18.25, including five against the Australians – and the fact that he has been slighted by the selectors since the leather-jacket Test at Centurion should be enough to fire him up. Plus, as Geoffrey Boycott points out in today's Daily Telegraph, as a left-armer coming over the wicket he must have a chance of discomfiting Gilchrist, a man who tucks in with relish to anything on his off stump, especially when delivered by an Englishman.

The weather forecast is good for the weekend. Headingley will be full. History will be echoing round the ground. But, as Henry Ford said, history is bunk. On Thursday, England have to live in the present.

England (probable) 1 Mike Atherton, 2 Marcus Trescothick, 3 Mark Butcher, 4 Nasser Hussain (capt), 5 Mark Ramprakash, 6 Usman Afzaal, 7 Alec Stewart (wkt), 8 Alex Tudor, 9 Andy Caddick, 10 Darren Gough, 11 Alan Mullally

Australia 1 Michael Slater, 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Ricky Ponting, 4 Mark Waugh, 5 Damien Martyn, 6 Simon Katich, 7 Adam Gilchrist (capt and wkt), 8 Shane Warne, 9 Brett Lee, 10 Jason Gillespie, 11 Glenn McGrath

Tanya Aldred is assistant editor of Wisden.com

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