LONDON, Aug 11: Injured captain Michael Vaughan warned on Friday he is confident England can retain the Ashes with or without him this winter.

The 31-year-old, who led England to their first Ashes win for 18 years last summer, insisted however he has not yet given up hope of taking part in the series against Australia starting in November.

“I'm very confident in whoever leads the team to produce a fantastic winter ahead and make sure we retain the Ashes,” Vaughan told Sky Sports News.

“There is always a slight worry it will take time to adjust to international cricket but the guys who have come in have done really well.

“You need that bit of luck but if you work hard you get that. The team will do everything in their power to try to emulate last summer.”—AFP