England will look to assert their dominance in the fifth and final Test of the Ashes series in Sydney.
Four Test matches done, one to go! For the hosts, the Ashes 2025-26 series has been extremely rewarding. But as we go towards the visitors’ dressing room, the noise begins to fade out. The kind of cricket which the Three Lions have displayed has not left much to be spoken about. However, skipper Ben Stokes has opened the lid on a lot of aspects, the most important of which are the tenures of Brendon McCullum and Stokes himself at the helm.
After England got hammered in the first three Tests, there was a lot of speculation from experts and former cricketers demanding McCullum to be stepped away from being the head coach of the English side. The results were nowhere near to be seen, at least in the first three Tests – which was a prime indicator of the fact that there was something horribly wrong.
However, Ben Stokes has come out in support of his head coach, stating that there would not be anyone better than Baz to take this English side to newer heights, from where this team is at the moment. He also voiced that the coach-captain duo is extremely aligned to do what it takes for the team to get to the next level. That being said, their first test towards recovery will be in Sydney as the teams gear up for the fifth and final Test match.
“We’ve put so much time and effort into getting this team to where it was from when we first started, and now we’re in a situation or position where we know we want to get even more out of the group, get even more out of individuals, and we feel we’ve done a very good job at getting everyone to the position we’re in right now”, said Stokes in an interview.
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The English skipper believes that the amount of time which they have after the Ashes series before their next Test assignment will provide a platform for them to re-think their strategies. England will host New Zealand in June 2026 for a Test series, which gives the duo a runway of almost five months. Additionally, Stokes believes that the consistency hasn’t been there in the last two years or so and some plans need to be given a thought again.
The 34-year-old opened up about the mental challenges that the players have to face while on away tours. Moreover, he also spoke about the pressure that creeps in after having a look at what goes around in the media. With the media aspect taking a humongous turn in the last decade, it becomes impossible for any player to completely stay away from the outside world.
Of course, all this is not to draw away any criticism for their performance. The last two overseas Ashes series which England ended up losing saw a complete turn in terms of the hierarchical roles that were assigned. Andy Flower hung his boots as the head coach after the 5-0 loss in 2013-14. Furthermore, there were many changes in 2021-22 as well. Director of cricket Ashley Giles and head coach Chris Silverwood were both sacked, and Joe Root made way for Stokes a month later.
“I’ve got pretty thick skin towards it all and it’s just impossible not to see it. The only way to do it is just throw your phone in the river”, said Stokes on the social media pressure.
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