PERTH: England cricket captain Ben Stokes has defended his side’s lack of warm-up matches as the team prepares for the first Ashes test against Australia in Perth beginning Nov. 21.
England is looking to break a 14-year winless run in Australia. Stokes and fellow veteran batter Joe Root have never won a test in Australia, with no survivors left from the 2010-11 series win.
Australia has won 5-0, 4-0, and 4-0 the last three times England has traveled Down Under for the most anticipated series in world cricket.
England’s only preparation for the first test is a three-day match against the England Lions, essentially an England A team, starting on Thursday at Lilac Hill in Perth.
That decision has drawn criticism from Ashes greats on both sides such as Ian Healy, Ian Botham and Geoffrey Boycott.
But Stokes believes England’s preparation will be more than sufficient to win a test in Australia for the first time since it last won an away Ashes series.
“There’s obviously state (domestic first-class) cricket going on at the moment,” Stokes said Wednesday. “Time has got to be taken into consideration as well. Some of our squad members were playing the (white-ball) series in New Zealand.”
Most of Australia’s Ashes test players are tuning up in those same first-class matches this week and early next.
Stokes also said cricket’s “jam-packed” schedule makes it more difficult to prepare than “10, 15, 20, 30 years ago.”
“We put a lot of time and effort into how we prepare for every series, and that hasn’t changed with this one,’ Stokes added. “Come the 21st of this month, we know that we would have done everything possible that we could have done.”
Root has not scored a century in 14 tests in Australia.
“He’s the greatest English batter that the nation’s seen,” Stokes said. “He’s been a phenomenal form over the last two, three years. He’s not come out here to score a 100 in Australia, he’s come out here to contribute to the team.”
Stokes said his team should not be overwhelmed playing in Australia.
“Coming to Australia for the Ashes is a lot different than anything else when you’re playing,” he said. “There’s a lot more that goes on away from the cricket itself.”
The Perth test will be followed by four more in Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
England cricket captain Ben Stokes defends his team’s lack of matches ahead of the Ashes
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England cricket captain Ben Stokes defends his team’s lack of matches ahead of the Ashes
- England cricket captain Ben Stokes has defended his side’s lack of warm-up matches as the team prepares for the first Ashes test against Australia in Perth beginning Nov. 21
- England is looking to break a 14-year winless run in Australia. Stokes and fellow veteran batter Joe Root have never won a test in Australia
Desert Vipers hold nerve to edge Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in ILT20 thriller
- Key contributions from Shimron Hetmyer and Khuzaima Tanveer prove decisive as the Vipers weather tense finish to overhaul target of 171
- Knight Riders start well, reaching 87 in 10 overs, but momentum shifts in second half of their inning as the Vipers’ spinners struck back
SHARJAH: Desert Vipers made it two wins out of two in the DP World International League T20, as they held their nerve to secure a dramatic two-wicket victory over Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Shimron Hetmyer’s counterattacking 48 off 25 balls, and a late-order cameo from Khuzaima Tanveer, who hit 31 off just 12 deliveries, proved decisive as the Vipers weathered a tense finish to overhaul a target of 171.
Sent in to bat, the Knight Riders made a confident start through Phil Salt and Alex Hales, with the latter anchoring the inning to top-score with 53 off 37 balls.
Despite reaching 87 in 10 overs, however, the momentum shifted in the second half of the inning as the Vipers’ spinners began to strike regularly. Qais Ahmad and Noor Ahmad led the middle-overs fightback, dismissing Hales and triggering a collapse as the Knight Riders lost five wickets.
Andre Russell’s unbeaten 36, and useful contributions from Alishan Sharafu and Unmukt Chand, at least helped Abu Dhabi reach a competitive total, but they were unable to fully capitalize on the side’s strong opening.
The Vipers began explosively in reply, smashing a tournament-record 19 runs from the first over. However, early wickets then left them wobbling on 44/3. Sam Curran and Dan Lawrence rebuilt the attack before the latter combined with Hetmyer for a crucial 68-run stand that swung the contest back in the their favor.
Late strikes from Ajay Kumar and Russell, the latter dismissing Hetmyer for his 500th T20 wicket, set up a tense finish, but Tanveer delivered under pressure. Needing eight runs off the final over, he sealed victory with a six and a boundary.
“It was, in many ways, a fortunate escape but an outstanding result for us,” said Curran, the Vipers’ stand-in captain.
“ADKR possess a very powerful batting lineup, and I believe our bowlers performed exceptionally well throughout the innings. The dismissals of Hetmyer and Dan introduced an unexpected twist but the team showed commendable composure in the crucial moments.”
Knight Riders’ stand-in skipper Sunil Narine felt his side had been lacking with the bat: “We were 15-20 runs short. We began well in the powerplay and that phase was crucial for us.
“The conditions eventually worked in their favor and the dew made it challenging for our spinners. But at the end of the day that’s part of the game.”
The result leaves the Vipers well placed at this early stage of the tournament, while the Knight Riders were left to reflect on missed opportunities after such a strong start.
