Ben Stokes believes he is enduring his "toughest time" as the captain of England ahead of the fourth Test of their Ashes series against Australia.
England were beaten by 82 runs in the third test in Adelaide, which saw Australia retain the urn as the tourists now look to avoid a humiliating whitewash Down Under.
The last time a team won all the matches in a series came in 2013-14, when Michael Clarke led Australia to a 5-0 triumph over Alastair Cook's England team.
And the hosts will fancy their chances of doing so again this time around, given England have lost four consecutive Tests.
Indeed, it equals their longest run in the format since the five-match stretch which came in that Ashes defeat 11 years ago.
England have also lost 10 of their last
13 Tests away from home (W3), with the positions of head coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Stokes coming under scrutiny.
"This is probably the toughest time right now as an England captain that I'll have," Stokes said in an interview with BBC Sport, with the series having begun with criticism from a host of former players over England's preparation for the series.
"I'm not going to run away from it. I feel like I will lead for the rest of this trip how I think I can help guys get through it. "
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On Tuesday, England director Rob Key said he would investigate the behaviour of the players after reports of excessive drinking between the second and third Tests.
Later on the same day, a video emerged on social media appearing to show Ben Duckett involved in a drunken altercation when trying to find his way back to the team hotel.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said they were aware of the video but would look to "establish the facts" before coming to a conclusion on the matter.
Stokes pointed to his own previous experiences when questioned on the issue, having missed the 2017-18 Ashes series following an incident outside a nightclub.
"I've had some pretty good times over my career. I've also had some pretty tough times," he said.
"I'm obviously aware of reports and stuff that's circulating around. For me as England captain, my main concern is the players and everyone in the dressing room.
"I know what it can feel like when everything just piles on top of you. It's hard. My main thing right now as England captain is making sure that everyone's OK. "
Duckett has struggled in the Ashes so far, having failed to score more than 29 runs in any of his six innings.
But he has retained his place in the squad for the fourth Test in Melbourne, with England confirming that fast bowler Jofra Archer would miss the rest of the series with an injury on Wednesday.
Archer has been replaced by Gus Atkinson, while Ollie Pope has been dropped in favour of Jacob Bethell after some poor performances with the bat at number three in the order.
"It's all pretty fresh and pretty new," Stokes said of the Duckett situation. "I've obviously reached out and spoken to him and offered my complete support to him throughout this.
"He's such an important player for this team, and we've still got two games of cricket to play. He's an incredibly influential person within this group. "








