Ashes 2025 live: England must win match in Adelaide after Bondi attack tribute

Here’s how England’s batsmen have been performing in terms of averages in this Ashes. Only Joe Root averages above 30…

• Jack Crawley: 30.00
• Ben Duckett: 16.00
• Ollie Pope: 26.25
• Joe Root: 53.66
• Harry Brook: 24.50
• Ben Stokes: 19.25
• Jamie Smith: 13.00

Stokes has a lot to say about how England are preparing for their Adelaide clash.

“I have full support that we can do this,” Stokes said.

“We’ve been able to take advantage of the experience of being in this situation before. We know what it’s like to be in this situation and we knew we had to come here and win so many games.

“In terms of that, there haven’t been any changes since before we started. Everyone knows what needs to happen in the coming week, and beyond that. If anything, it’s really made everything a little more simple and a little more clear for us.”

Captain Ben Stokes has made it clear there is no room for “weak guys” on England’s faltering Ashes tour.

Stokes’s side are 2-0 down with three matches remaining and there are serious question marks over his England team’s ability to react in big moments, and time is running out to find a suitable response.

“There’s a saying we’ve said a lot here, that Australia is not for the faint-hearted,” he said after watching his team trail 2-0.

“Teams coming to Australia can’t be soft or weak, no matter what, because that’s how it is here: it’s a tough place. You can’t come to Australia and be weak, but you also can’t be in my dressing room if you are and it’s nothing like that.

“We pick people based on ability and skill, but we also pick people based on character and mentality. I think there are some things that obviously need to be addressed, but deep down we have characters that I know can deliver on what we have to do in the next three games.”

Ben Stokes has hinted that England will bat first if they win the toss in the third Test against Australia in Adelaide.

It is expected to be extremely hot in Adelaide this week, with temperatures reaching 32C on the opening day on Wednesday and 37C on day two on Thursday, before dropping slightly towards the end of the match.

England must win this Test to remain hopeful of winning the Ashes, having lost the first two matches in Perth and Brisbane after consecutive defeats and the toss could prove decisive in the outcome in South Australia.

Stokes has often chosen to bowl first during his captaincy and has preferred to chase the target with the bat in the fourth innings. But with conditions likely to favor the batsmen in the early days, and provide a brutal environment for bowlers to complete their overs, he pointed to one of England’s most infamous calls to bat first.

Well, don’t say it out loud.

“Looking forward to this Test match,” Brendon McCullum said after the conclusion of England’s second Ashes Test after falling 2-0 to Australia. “To be honest, I really think we over-prepared.”

A bookmark moment for Ashes tributes everywhere. With Ben Stokes, the baseball leader and co-founder, hard on himself and the team, they mildly suffered a crushing defeat that almost ended England’s hopes, losing by eight wickets.

People had to wait a long time for this. A referendum on a new style of play, a box-office series clash between cricket’s two oldest enemies. And after six days on the pitch – everything is done.

Read Cameron Ponsonby’s full excerpt from the second Test:

Returning to the second Test and following England’s latest defeat, our man on the field in Australia, Cameron Ponsonby, has his say on England’s Ashes hopes.

England have been working hard in the nets since arriving in Adelaide

England have received help from an unexpected source as Australian-born Surrey bowler Dan Worrall has joined in for a training session as they prepare for the crucial Test in Adelaide.

Former Australia international fast bowler Worrall dressed himself in an England Euro 96 football shirt and teamed up with Ben Stokes’s side for net practice at the Adelaide Oval, where the England batsman will be hoping to regain some much-needed form.

Worrall offered his assistance to the England and Wales Cricket Board after being asked to help by some of his Surrey teammates, whom he met in Adelaide.

The 34-year-old, who plays Sheffield Shield cricket for South Australia, played three One Day Internationals for Australia in 2016 and has also played twice with Gloucestershire before joining Surrey in 2022.

So, news for England team and bad news for Shoaib Bashir.

England have recalled Josh Tong for this evening’s Test but spinner Bashir has again been ruled out.

Tongue returns in place of out-of-form Gus Atkinson in the fast bowling attack, the only change from the side which trailed 2-0 by eight wickets at the Gabba.

It means Surrey all-rounder Will Jacks retains his place as the designated spinner, the equivalent of a crucial vote of no confidence in Bashir.

The 22-year-old has long been tipped for a prominent role in this series but after missing out on fast pitches in Perth and Brisbane, he has failed to bowl out a player who is better known for his white-ball batting than his red-ball bowling.

Ben Stokes has challenged his England team to show their spirit and prove they have “a bit of fire” as their Ashes campaign reaches a must-win destination in Adelaide.

The tourists have made just one change to their playing eleven for the third Test, with Josh Tongue recalled in place of fellow fast bowler Gus Atkinson, but Stokes has made it clear he wants to see a different side from his players.

After their eight-wicket defeat in Brisbane, captain Stokes bluntly stated that his dressing room is “no place for weaklings”.