Ashes 2025-26: England Test skipper Ben Stokes responded to fans and renowned cricketers who were questioning his team’s preparation for the upcoming Ashes series. He has disregarded the criticism regarding his team received from former players and called them ‘has-beens’.
England set to play a 3-day match against the England Lions at Perth’s Lilac Hill prior to the first Test against their arch rivals Australia on November 21.
This limited preparation which is done by his team has been criticised by well known people like Ian Botham, Michael Vaughan, and former Australian opener Simon Katich. Nevertheless, Stokes rejected the issue, affirming that the internal match will be an extreme, “balls to the wall” game to make the team ready.
England Skipper Dismisses Old-School Training Ideals As Ashes Near
“The next three days is balls to the wall for everyone. No easing into it. There’ll be a good run out for everyone,” he said.
“We’ve not been preparing for this tour over the last three weeks, we’ve put a lot of thought and process into this for a few years now.
“There’s quite a few factors that play into why we can’t prepare how the has-beens maybe prepared in the past. The landscape of cricket has changed and that affects preparation and how you are able to do it. But we are very confident and very comfortable with how we prepare because we leave no stone unturned.
“You used to be able to come out on a tour a month-and-a-half, two months before the first game started. Now there’s so much cricket packed into the schedule, it’s impossible to do it how it used to be done.”
Ben Stokes Brushes Off Spicy Pre-Ashes War Of Words
When Ben Stokes arrived in Australia he was welcomed to a front-page headline labeling him as “Captain Cocky Complainer,” and the local press continued to criticise him and his teammates in the days that followed.
To which he replied while smiling at the treatment and adding – “I think the build-up is always hyped up and it always gets quite spicy the closer you get to the opening game.
“I think we just let the outside people have those war of words. It’s been quite funny to see what’s been coming out recently.”
