Australia are likely to pit Cameron Bancroft, David Warner and Steve Smith together at Edgbaston for the first time since they were banned for their roles in the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town a year ago, with Usman Khawaja batting at four.
But now there's arguably more at stake for both sides than the series result.
But the 28-year-old was one of the stars of England's triumphant World Cup campaign earlier this season and Root, also involved in that success, is eager to have Stokes back as his Test vice-captain after Jos Buttler took over the role.
Australian openers David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were greeted with a chorus of boos and and chants of "cheats" in a hostile start to the Ashes series against England.
"England haven't lost here in how long?"
Stokes was given a rest in the match against Ireland after his heroics in the World Cup final against New Zealand. The match which now underway at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground has Australia batting first as they chose to bat first.
"It's going to be whether our batsmen have learned and adjusted from last time they were here when they just went too hard at the ball".
South African broadcasters caught Bancroft scratching the surface of the match ball with sandpaper during a test in Cape Town last March - part of clumsy plot to alter the condition of the ball for Australia's bowlers.
Warner, who stopped batting in the nets on Monday after being struck on the thigh, had a hit on Tuesday to allay fears he was in any doubt for the first Test. Archer hasn't made it to the XI for the first game, but Roy is set for his Ashes debut. If he comes back in the team it'll be a really great story, from where he's come from. We've been to lots of Ashes series and they're all the same. The elbow problem, picked up while playing in the Bangladesh Premier League, was for a time considered problematic for Smith's return from the ban, but he revealed that it brought with it a far deeper struggle.
But he said after listening to recent comments from members within the Australia camp he sensed a change of philosophy, which he can see the merit behind.
Since his nation's last Test against Sri Lanka ended in February, Paine has played in six matches, making just 163 runs at an average of 18.11 for Tasmania and during Australia's warm-up games. So much so that they were even said to be "soft". "There are other little things that can affect a captain mentally so anything I can do to help him". Archer - last seen twerking with the best of them in Barbados - has had more of an Ian Botham preparation for the Ashes than many at Lords would have wished for.
The head coach of Australian National Cricket Team Justin Langer said on the new developments in Ashes squads, "there's probably three to be fair, Starcy, Peter Siddle and Josh Hazlewood, for one spot".
