Stoking the fires ahead of the Ashes series, former England captain David Gower has said Australia is a country with "no culture" and that its cricketers have a "certain animal mentality".

Asked if England's long-standing rivalry with Australia was a clash of cultures, Gower said: "I'm tempted to say, how can you have a clash of cultures when you're playing against a country with no culture? That would almost be sledging."

"It's the same with sledging on the field. There's a certain animal mentality, and if they sense a bit of weakness, they'll try it on more," Gower told 'Radio Times'.

Gower's comments come ahead of a busy fixture list between the two rivals, which begins with a Champions Trophy clash at Edgbaston on Saturday and continues with five Tests, two T20 internationals and five more one-day internationals in the coming months.

Gower, who played 117 Tests for England from 1978 to 1992 and captained his side to victory in the 1985 Ashes series, said: "If you're on the boundary you have to be very, very thick-skinned, because the Aussie crowd will try you with absolutely anything.

"The trouble is, if they've had 10 cans of lager, their ability to come up with something akin to Oscar Wilde diminishes. A lot of it therefore tends to be very stereotypical. But it's feral; if they sense weakness, they'll come at you."