Australian cricket fans have wasted no time taking to social media to criticise bowling great Shane Warne over his insistence Mitchell Starc be dropped from the Test team.

Starc got the first Ashes Test off to the best possible start for Australia, removing England opener Rory Burns for a golden duck on the first ball of the series.

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It was just the second time a wicket has been taken with the first ball of the series in Ashes history, with an 85-year gap between Starc's wicket and Ernest McCormick's dismissal of England's Thomas Worthington in 1936.

Australia capitalised on the momentum bought by Starc's first-ball wicket, with new captain Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood taking a further one and two wickets apiece to leave the visitors in serious trouble at 4/47 early on day one.

Starc's position in the Test team had been up for some debate prior to the first Ashes Test in Brisbane, however few commentators were as critical of the NSW quick as Warne.

The extent of Warne's criticism eventually prompted some calls for the former Test star to ease off somewhat in his calls for Starc to be replaced.

Fans who felt Warne's calls had become a little too much were quick to give the Aussie great a clip on social media after Starc made the opening breakthrough of the Ashes.

Moments later, Josh Hazlewood dismissed Dawid Malan to leave England reeling.

Hazlewood struck again soon afterwards, removing England captain Joe Root for a duck, before Pat Cummins dismissed Ben Stokes.

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Opener Haseeb Hamed (25no) and Ollie Pope (17no) steadied the ship somewhat for England, after a disastrous first hour for the tourists, to share an unbeaten 30-run stand to the innings break.

Having overlooked veteran quick Stuart Broad in a shock selection call, England captain Joe Root chose to bat under overcast Brisbane skies after winning the toss.

That decision almost instantly looked to be a bad call when Starc made the very first delivery of the match swing around England opener Rory Burns' pads and crash into the stumps.

It created unwanted history for Burns, who is just the second batsman in Ashes history to be dismissed on the first ball of a series and his sixth Test duck of the calendar year is a record for an England opener.

It's also the 13th time Starc has claimed a wicket in the first over of a Test innings since 2014.

Starc's instant impact had the Gabba crowd roaring and just moments later the hosts were in dreamland when Hazlewood lured Dawid Malan (6) to edge a regulation catch for debutant Alex Carey to pouch.

That wicket brought Root to the crease and Cummins instantly threw himself into the attack.

Before he could deliver a single ball to his counterpart, however, Root was gone, caught smartly at first slip by David Warner for a duck off Hazlewood to leave the tourists' 3-11 inside six overs.

Allrounder Ben Stokes, playing his first competitive match since July, survived to the drinks break along with Hamed.

The first over of the second hour brought another wicket when Cummins claimed his first scalp as Australia captain, with Stokes fending a rising delivery to a gleeful Marnus Labuschagne at third slip.

Hazlewood ended the session with the remarkable figures of 2-3 off seven overs including four maidens with Starc, 1-25 off seven overs, and Cummins, 1-16 off six overs, playing their part.

England's decision not to pick Broad means they are playing in an Ashes Test without either the 35-year-old or fellow veteran quick James Anderson for the first time since 2006.

Instead the tourists are hoping a bowling attack of Stokes, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and spinner Jack Leach can deliver at a venue where England last won in 1986.

With AAP

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