England’s Ollie Pope bats on day two of the first Ashes cricket test match between Australia and England in Perth. (AP) England batsman Ollie Pope has hit back at criticism following the Ashes defeat in Australia, saying the perception that the team “were not upset” is not accurate, while acknowledging why that view has taken hold among fans and pundits.England led by Ben Stokes lost 4-1 to Australia cricket team in Ashes 2025/26 series. The tour is still under the control of the England and Wales Cricket Board.In addition to the results on the field, the tour drew attention to itself with reports on team culture. During the break in Noosa there were claims that the players were drinking heavily. There were also reports that vice-captain Harry Brook had an altercation with a nightclub bouncer during a pre-series visit to New Zealand.
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Jay Shah calls 2019 to 2026 as the golden era of Indian cricket Pope said the team remained focused on winning the Ashes and pointed to the first Test in Perth as a key moment.“Going into this series, there was a lot of talk about the build-up,” Pope told reporters. “As a team, it might be a misconception that we weren’t as nervous as we seemed.Speaking at Surrey’s media day, the 28-year-old said the opening test result shaped the story.“The difficult thing for everyone in that first game (Test) was the nature of it. If we had won it and been a bit better on the second day, the mindset is different.“Obviously we want to be the favorite team on and off the field and unfortunately our performance didn’t allow us to do that in Australia.”“I can understand why people felt that way, but at the same time the perception that we weren’t upset was probably the hardest thing. All we wanted to do was go and win the Ashes…All anyone wanted was to win,” Pope said.“And for us at times it was just trying, in our minds, to take the pressure off the actual Test match.”Even before the start of the series, there were questions about England’s preparation in Australian conditions. Their preparation included a three-day match against the England Lions at Lilac Hill in Perth.“As we’ve done in previous years, we tried to treat it like a normal series to get the best out of ourselves,” Pope said. “Unfortunately, it didn’t go quite as planned.He added: “I know what I need to be as prepared as I can be. From a personal point of view, I felt as prepared as I could be for the first test.”Pope was dropped after the third Test with an average of 20.83 in the first three matches. He was replaced by Jacob Bethell and scored a century in the fifth Test in Sydney.Despite the setback, Pope said he is focused on returning to the side.“I still feel like my best batting years are yet to come.He was speaking after the ECB reversed a plan to restrict Ashes players from speaking to the media ahead of the county’s season while assessments of the tour continue.
