England captain Ben Stokes is key to his team’s chances of regaining the prestigious urn during the upcoming Ashes tour Down Under, believes former batter Mark Ramprakash. According to Ramprakash, the tourists could well upstage the Australians and script an away series win against the arch-rivals for the first time in 15 years, provided their charismatic skipper and all-rounder stays on the park for all five Tests.
Since creating history with a 3-1 series triumph during the 2010-11 trip, England haven’t won a Test on Aussie shores and went down 5-0, 4-0 and 4-0 in the most embarrassing scorelines in 2013-14, 2017-18 and 2021-22 summers.
The five-Test series thus presents Stokes with an opportunity to rewrite history and cement his legacy as one
of England’s most successful captains, having led the team’s amazing turnaround since taking over alongside head coach Brendon McCullum.
At his best, Stokes can be a seriously impactful left-hander in the middle-order and someone who can produce vital breakthroughs with his skiddy right-arm seam-ups.
“He seems to really connect with his team-mates,” Ramprakash told BBC Radio 5 Live on their Ashes preview show. “He knows how difficult it is to be an international cricketer. He gives them his full backing and has great empathy to understand the ups and downs.”
Stokes’ injury woes, however, would be a concern for England, as the captain has been managing a shoulder issue for a while and missed England’s last Test of the home season against India. Previously, he had to skip a Test match against Pakistan due to a hamstring injury, which reoccurred during the following tour of New Zealand.
“If he is not in the middle to make those decisions, to know when to back his bowlers, when to attack, that is a massive vacuum. If Ben Stokes plays these five Tests, then I think England win and win quite comfortably,” Ramprakash said.
Since taking over as a full-time skipper from Joe Root back in June 2022, Stokes has led England to 22 wins in 36 Tests and struck 1,971 runs while also taking 56 wickets.
England open their Ashes campaign in Perth on Friday, November 21.
