New season of 'The Test' doco to focus on bitter Ashes series

The curtain is set to be lifted on the acrimonious fallout of Jonny Bairstow's stumping at Lord's with the incident set to be one of the highlights of the new season of Amazon's Prime Video documentary The Test, announced today.

The third season of The Test will take viewers behind the scenes for the team's triumph in the World Test Championship final, where they beat India, and then continue for this year's men's Ashes series.

With flashpoints aplenty amid the mania of England's 'Bazball' craze, the no-holds barred documentary will lift the lid on all the behind-the-scenes action.

Alex Carey, who executed the Bairstow stumping and instantly made himself a villain for England's tabloid press and local fans, is set to play a leading role in the documentary, which will again pull back the curtain to explore the untold, emotional, and personal stories behind the iconic sporting moments.

As well as Carey, the documentary closely follows, among others, skipper Pat Cummins, veteran opener Usman Khawaja and spinner Nathan Lyon, who bravely batted at Lord's despite a serious calf injury that cut short his tour.

Confronted with merciless opponents, hostile crowds, and the pressure of a legacy-defining tour, the series will feature the players' reflections and key moments with their families as they navigate the dual challenges of playing international cricket while juggling their family roles.

The focus on the Ashes marks a return to the series that proved so captivating for the inaugural season of The Test that charted 'a new era' for the Australian men's team in the wake of the 2018 sandpaper scandal.

That series charting the 2019 Ashes tour, under then head coach Justin Langer, was groundbreaking, taking viewers inside the Lord's changeroom when Steve Smith was felled by a Jofra Archer bouncer, and Langer famously kicking over a trash can as Ben Stokes batted at Headingley.

"Cricket fans in Australia and across the world will ride all the emotions and tight contests, as our players battle it out on the biggest stages of all. This series will be the best yet," promised Cricket Australia's head of broadcasting and production, Richard Ostroff.

A joint project between Prime Video, CA and Whooshka Media that sees the return of directors Adrian Brown and Sheldon Wynne, season three of The Test will launch exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories in 2024.

Cricket.com.au will have you covered for the first look at the trailer when it drops and the reveal of the release date.

Watch Seasons 1 and 2 of The Test on Prime Video here