Ben Stokes has called on his England side to move on quickly from their catastrophic defeat inside two days in the first Ashes Test in Perth. The tourists were set Australia a target of 205 but Travis Head’s blistering 123 off 83 balls powered the hosts to a crushing victory, leaving the England captain “shellshocked”.
“We’ve got to let those two hours sink in and reflect on it properly, without the emotion that’s attached to what’s just gone on out there,” Stokes said. “You’ve got to feel it and get rid of it.” He insisted the team must not carry any baggage into the second Test in Brisbane, where they need to win to level the series.
Head, who replaced the injured Usman Khawaja as opener, admitted he had questioned his own ability after a four-month layoff from Test cricket. “I was worried about: ‘Am I capable of doing it still?’” he said. His innings was described by Australia captain Steve Smith as “one of the great Ashes knocks”.
England coach Brendon McCullum confirmed there would be no change in approach despite the heavy loss. “What we won’t be changing is our blueprint,” he said. “We believe in what we’re doing, the style that has been set over the past couple of years and the players we’ve got.”
