Ben Stokes has admitted he was “shell-shocked” after England’s humiliating eight-wicket defeat to Australia inside two days in the first Ashes Test at Perth. The England captain struggled to process how his side squandered a golden opportunity to win on Australian soil for the first time in 15 years.

​

“Shell-Shocked” by Head’s Assault

Stokes pointed to Travis Head’s blistering century as the turning point that snatched the game away. Head smashed an incredible 123 off just 83 balls, including 12 fours and 4 sixes, as Australia chased down 205 in just 29.2 overs.

​

“Little bit shell-shocked, it was pretty phenomenal from Head,” Stokes said. “It’s pretty raw, pretty emotional, but that was some knock. We tried three or four different plans to get him, but when he’s going like a train he’s very hard to stop”.

​

Golden Opportunity Squandered

England had taken a 40-run lead after the first innings, dismissing Australia for 132 thanks to Stokes’ own five-wicket haul. However, they capitulated in their second innings, crumbling to 164 all out in just 34.4 overs against a rampant Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland.

​

Starc claimed 10 wickets in the match (7/52 and 3/45), while Boland took 4/41 in the second innings to dismantle England’s batting lineup.

​

Need to Move On Quickly

Despite the crushing nature of the defeat, Stokes urged his team to shed the emotional baggage before the second Test in Brisbane starting December 4.

“We’ll let this sink in, but we’ve got four more games. It’s a long time before Brisbane, we’ll go away and put in the graft. Because when we get to Brisbane we need to be back up to that mindset of how we came into this game, still very confident of our abilities and achieving the goal,” Stokes emphasized.

​

Inexperienced Squad

With many players experiencing their first Ashes series in Australia, Stokes acknowledged his role in managing the mental fallout. “I think we’ve got to let that whole two hours sort of sink in first and reflect on it properly, without the emotion that’s attached to what’s just gone on there,” he said.

​

“But also you’ve then got to get rid of them as quickly as you possibly can, while also learning from it,” he added, highlighting the challenge facing his young side.

Match Summary

England 1st Innings: 172 (Starc 7/52) Australia 1st Innings: 132 (Stokes 5/38, Carse 3/32) England 2nd Innings: 164 (Boland 4/41, Starc 3/45) Australia 2nd Innings: 205/2 (Head 123, Labuschagne 51*)

​

Result: Australia won by 8 wickets inside two days.