Ben Stokes has hit out at Ian Botham’s criticism that England are not preparing hard enough for the upcoming Ashes. Botham questioned England’s decision to play only one domestic match in Australia before the series, warning that the team may arrive underprepared to one of cricket’s toughest competitions.
Stokes defended the team’s approach, saying England had done their best given the busy schedule leading up to the Ashes. He added that preparation methods in modern cricket have evolved over the years and assured that England will do everything within their control before the series begins in Perth.
“To be honest, I’m not really sure what else we should be doing. We’ve been preparing for this for a long time. There’s state cricket going on at the moment – a few Australian boys are playing – and of course there’s time to consider. Some of our team have been in New Zealand recently for the series so the schedule is pretty busy for reporters,” Stokes told reporters.
“Preparation these days is not quite what it was 10, 15 or 30 years ago; a lot has changed in cricket. But we put a lot of time and effort into how we prepare for every series and that hasn’t changed for this one. Come the 21st of this month, we’ll know we’ve done everything we can to be in the right place to start the tour.”
TOUGH ROAD FOR ENGLAND
England face a daunting challenge having not won an Ashes series in Australia since 2010-11. Joe Root, the team’s leading scorer in Tests, is still looking for his maiden century on Australian soil.
The visitors begin their campaign on November 21 with the series opener in Perth, followed by Tests in Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
November 12, 2025
