7 England players who were called up as replacements during an Ashes series

Bob Willis made a strong impression during the 1970-71 Ashes series

Barry Knight (1965-66)

Knight was a useful all-rounder who found himself out of favor with the England side for over 18 months prior to this Ashes series. He was flown out to Australia on an emergency basis when David Larter (heel) and David Brown (side muscles) were ruled out for a few weeks. Knight played in two of the Test matches, taking six wickets in the first one. He didn't have a great time with the bat, though. He found himself in and out of the England side and played his last Test match against the Kiwis in 1969.

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Bob Willis (1970-71)

Ray Illingworth, before sailing off for Australia, was very optimistic about his fast bowling pair of Alan Ward and John Snow. Ward though only managed to play a couple of tour games before being ruled out with a broken ankle. Ken Shuttleworth took his place in the first couple of Test matches and bowled decently. Then, Bob Willis, flown out of England as a replacement, made his debut in the fourth Test of the series and immediately made an impact. While Snow was the pick of the bowlers, he was ably supported by Willis who went on to have a successful career as an opening bowler for England.