Australia captain defends Ben Stokes amid England’s struggles, slams Harry Brook

Australian women’s captain Alyssa Healy backed England captain Ben Stokes amid criticism for his team’s struggles during the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 series. Healy said the captain is being unfairly blamed for the team’s problems, adding that England batters, including Harry Brook, have shown poor shot selection.

England hoped to end their Test series win drought in Australia, but their campaign suffered heavy losses in Perth and Brisbane. They are now trailing 2-0 and must win the third Test, set to take place at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide from December 17. Stokes has taken the blame as they try to keep the contest alive.

Ben Stokes shoulders too much of the accountability - Alyssa Healy

Speaking on the Willow Talk podcast, Alyssa Healy defended Ben Stokes as criticism grows around England’s Ashes struggles. She said that Ben Stokes is unfairly burdened with responsibility and takes on far more blame than he deserves.

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"I actually think Ben Stokes shoulders too much of the accountability for everything. I have full praise for him. He stands there at the end of every Test match that they lose and says, 'I'll take accountability for this, this, [and] this. I did this wrong, I did that wrong.'," Healy said on the Willow Talk podcast.

Harry Brook Played a Shocking Shot Twice in This Test - Alyssa Healy

Alyssa Healy questioned why England’s senior players aren’t taking responsibility for their own mistakes. Healy said that players should be willing to admit when their poor decisions hurt the team. She also pointed out that Harry Brook played unnecessarily reckless shots in the series.

"How about taking a little bit of load off your captain? 'Hi, my name's Harry Brook, I played a shocking shot twice in this Test match (Brisbane) and I put our team under the pump unnecessarily twice'," Healy stated.

"I've never heard him come out and say that. There's your captain standing there sticking up for him, saying, 'I did this wrong, I did that wrong.' For me, that screams trouble, and that's creating a bubble environment that he and Brendon [McCullum] are trying to empower their players to be good enough to be out there and compete."

Harry Brook Under Pressure for Reckless Shots Throughout the Series

England have struggled through the Ashes, failing to stay in control of sessions. Their batting has collapsed too many times, the bowlers have lacked discipline, and missed chances have made things worse. The Bazball style is being questioned for not working against a strong Australian side.

Ben Stokes has not been able to pull his team out of tough situations either. Several players have also failed to step up, including Harry Brook.

The vice-captain looked set on 31 in Brisbane before playing a careless shot to Steve Smith in the slips. He edged behind for just 15 as England were bowled out for 241 in the second innings. Brook has scored only 98 runs in four innings at an average of 24.50 so far.

Also read: "We’ve seen a lot of setbacks" - Rohit Sharma on emotional Virat Kohli hug after T20 World Cup 2024 win