Latest news with #AshesDownUnder
Int'l Cricket Council
2 days ago
- Sport
- Int'l Cricket Council
Ahmed targets all-round consistency before Ashes ICC World Test Championship
Rehan Ahmed created history on his Test debut, becoming the youngest-ever player to pick a five-for in the format. Having found success early in his career, he featured in England's subsequent sub-continent assignments, including the tour of India. Despite his 22 wickets from five outings, Ahmed didn't find a place in the England Test squad on a regular basis. He was missing from the recently concluded home series against India, despite an injury to first-choice spinner Shoaib Bashir. But Ahmed has boosted his credentials ahead of the all-important Ashes Down Under. He found immense success in the domestic season for Leicestershire scoring 760 runs in 10 matches that included five centuries to go with his 23 wickets, making a good case for himself as an all-round spin bowling prospect. 'I still feel like I'm a bowler who bowls and a batter who can bat,' Ahmed stated in an interview with Telegraph Sport.
India.com
2 days ago
- Sport
- India.com
Ideally Not For Surgery For Now But...: Chris Woakes Gives Major Update On His Dislocated Shoulder Ahead Of Ashes Series
After a gruelling Test series against India which ended in 2-2 draw, England will shift their attention to the Ashes Down Under later this year and experienced pacer Chris Woakes has shared a major update on his shoulder injury. Woakes, who sustained a dislocated shoulder while fielding during the fifth Test against India earlier this month, believes he's recovering better than he anticipated. Speaking on the sidelines of The Hundred, the England quick made an appearance without an arm sling. "Certainly good news for me. That's the best way to look at it. Obviously out of the sling and feel like I can move it a lot better now which is good two weeks down the line," Woakes told Sky Sports. "I suppose once you get a little bit more movement into it, feels little bit more normal. But still a lot of work to do. Going to try and (stay) focused on the rehab and get it as strong as possible. Ideally not for surgery for now but we'll see how that goes and hopefully we can get it nice and strong again," he added. Read Also: Moeen Ali Hits Back At David Warner For His 'Surfboard' Remark On Joe Root Update On Chris Woakes' Recovery The update from Woakes comes after he shared with the BBC Sport earlier this month that he was still looking to opt between a surgery and a rehab to deal with the injury. The 36-year-old Woakes had picked up a nasty injury on the opening day of the series decider against India at The Oval, London. Despite being ruled out of action for the remainder of the Test, Woakes walked out to bat with his left arm in a sling on a tense final morning as England chased a series-clinching victory, but fell short by six runs. After the series against India, Ben Stokes-led England have another five-Test series assignment against arch-rivals Australia, starting November 21.
Int'l Cricket Council
2 days ago
- Sport
- Int'l Cricket Council
England pacer shares key injury update ahead of Ashes The Ashes, 2025/26
After a gruelling Test series against India, England shift their attention to the Ashes Down Under later this year, and pacer Chris Woakes has conceded positive news with regards to his recovery. Woakes, who sustained a dislocated shoulder while fielding during the fifth Test against India earlier this month, believes he's recovering better than he anticipated. Speaking to Sky Sports on the sidelines of The Hundred, the England quick made an appearance without an arm sling. 'Certainly good news for me. That's the best way to look at it,' Woakes told Sky Sports. 'Obviously out of the sling and feel like I can move it a lot better now which is good two weeks down the line. 'I suppose once you get a little bit more movement into it, feels little bit more normal. But still a lot of work to do. 'Going to try and (stay) focused on the rehab and get it as strong as possible. Ideally not for surgery for now but we'll see how that goes and hopefully we can get it nice and strong again.' The update from Woakes comes after he shared with the BBC Sport earlier this month that he was still looking to opt between a surgery and a rehab to deal with the injury. Woakes had picked up a nasty injury on the opening day of the series decider against India at The Oval. Despite being ruled out of action for the remainder of the Test, Woakes would walk out to bat with his left arm in a sling on a tense final morning as England chased a series-clinching victory, but fell short by six runs. The news would come as a positive for England, who have another five-Test series assignment against arch-rivals Australia starting November 21.
News18
30-07-2025
- Sport
- News18
Weighed risk and reward, risk was too high: Stokes on missing Oval Test
London, Jul 30 (PTI) Ben Stokes did not care about his injury-ravaged body while bowling those difference making overs for England over the course of the first four Tests but he says the risk is far too high to go out one last time in the series for the team he leads from the front. Stokes, the leading wicket-taker of the series with 17 scalps, will be a mere spectator at The Oval, robbing the series finale of his charismatic on-field presence. No Jofra Archer, and possibly no Jasprit Bumrah in the opposition, also takes sheen off what has been a riveting series. After all, all those long spells Stokes bowled at Lord's and Manchester had an adverse impact on his right shoulder, leading to a muscle tear. The fighter that he is, Stokes was bullish about his participation at The Oval but the scans revealed he could not go any further even if he wanted to. Stokes will call the shots from the dressing room but England will not have his invaluable service with both bat and ball. 'It's one of those weighing up the risk-reward, and the risk was way too high for damaging this any further than it currently is. I didn't want to… and I wouldn't expect to put any one of my players at risk with an injury like this. 'I'll start rehabbing and focus on what we've got coming up. Very disappointed but almost needed a bit more time than I normally would give to these kind of things to make a decision," said Stokes who expects to be fully fit in six to seven weeks ahead of the Ashes Down Under. Stokes was visibly disappointed at the missing out on the final Test of the series that he has given his all for but his sense of humour remained intact. 'It's a decent tear of one of the muscles I can't pronounce, because I don't know how to say it (smiles). We took as long as we could to take the decision. There was a bit of emotion going into this kind of stuff when you find out what you done. 'I came down here this morning to give myself every chance of seeing if I could just play as a batter. Bowling was ruled out as soon as the scans came in. You need that time chatting with the medical team, Baz, and then almost just 20 minutes to myself out there, just to really be clear around the decision that we made." Asked if he could have managed his workload differently, Stokes replied in the negative. 'No, not at all. When I'm out on the field I play to win and give everything I possibly can. If I feel there's a moment in a game where I need to put everything, I'll do that because it's how much this team means to me, playing for England means to me, winning means to me." 'There's absolutely nothing I could have done before. Being a professional, sportsman injuries are part of this game and I can't do anything about that," said Stokes who remains confident that his team can do the job without him. Four pacers for seamer friendly conditions ========================== Expecting seamer friendly conditions, England have named four pacers in the playing eleven with Jacob Bethell and Joe Root being the part time spin options. 'We had to think about me not being able to (bowl), if I was to play it would be as a batter. Here generally it's your seamers who take the wickets, being a forced change, having Beth come in at 6 we still felt we wanted the four seamers," said Stokes. 'We felt that here gives you the best chance of winning. The way it's played here through the year in the championship as well, it's looked very similar to this and played like that. 'This one looks a lot more live grass on the wicket than the others. I wouldn't be surprised this week if there's a bit more assistance there for the seamers." No regrets: Stokes on Manchester draw ======================== Stokes stood by his much talked about call to end the game in Manchester with 15 overs left on day five. India refused his proposal with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar nearing deserving hundreds. 'No regrets but I think it's one of those when you've not been there in the field for 250 overs, you do have a bit more of an understanding towards both sides. The two lads Jadeja and Washington played incredibly well up until that point, so you understand as to why they wanted to stay put there and get their hundreds." 'But, again, as I said at the end of the game, I'm not going to bowl any of my bowlers in a situation where we can't win and expose any of those guys to injury. We're over it. I think India are over that whole thing. 'Let's just try our best not to focus too much on a 20-min period of cricket when it's been such a good series so far." Captaincy load in five Test series ==================== A five match series going down to the wire like the one against India takes a massive toll as leader of the team, said Stokes. 'Big. Big toll. Physically it's very tough, especially out in the field. It is tiring. But the mental side of it as well is just as tiring. This series has gone to the last session every time, don't know if that's ever happened before. It's been a tough, gruelling series but class to play in. top videos View all 'It's a real test of character, of physicality. The way both teams have fronted up every single day and session, given everything for their country is testament to how much this format means to England and India. 'The easy option would be to not turn up, give up. But both teams have turned up every single day and given absolutely everything and left everything out on the field, I don't see it being any different this week," Stokes added. PTI BS APA APA (This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI) view comments First Published: July 30, 2025, 18:45 IST News agency-feeds Weighed risk and reward, risk was too high: Stokes on missing Oval Test Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Indian Express
24-07-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Steve Smith on Ashes: ‘England batters are going to be challenged'
Six months before the Ashes Down Under, Australia's Steve Smith has sounded out a warning to England. Talking to BBC on the sidelines of The Hundred, he said. 'Their batters are going to be challenged a little bit differently to the wickets they have had over in England for a while, which have looked pretty flat and good for batting.' For instance, in India's tour to Australia last year, only three batsmen scored a hundred, whereas Shubman Gill alone registered three in the series against England. This comes after swelling criticism that the pitches in the Brendon McCullum-Ben Stokes era had been bereft of typical English characteristics, like moisture-laden surfaces that propitiate swing in the first hour of each day. Surfaces have tended to last all five days with the surface not deteriorating dramatically. 'But the wickets in Australia in the last three or four years have been very tricky for top order batters. It is going to be a good challenge for them,' Smith fired a salvo. However, Australia batting is far from formidable. They have not yet pencilled in on an opening partner to Usman Khawaja, who himself is riding a trough. There is an uncertainty for the No 3 slot, where Cameron Green has not quite prospered, managing only one fifty-plus score in eight outings. 'If you can get lateral movement at 83 to 85 (mph), I think you'll bowl Australia out. I saw that in the World Test Championship final,' Michael Vaughan too observed recently. 'If we're honest, there are only two or three players from both sides that can play forward defences properly. If you can challenge the forward defence with a bit of lateral movement, it's no surprise you see clusters of wickets fall when England or Australia are batting when the ball is moving around a bit, because they play the expansive game and not many of them have the basics of playing forward defence and seeing the ball off. That's the modern game,' he had said. But Smith, who averages 56.01 in Tests against England, anticipates a wonderful series. 'But it's going to be a wonderful series. I have been watching the India and England series and there has been some great cricket played there, so I think the Ashes this year is going to be an absolute belter,' he said. He has also noticed the different gears England had shown in the series against India. Rather than full-throttle Bazball, they have played according to the situation. 'They have started to play a little bit differently in the last couple of weeks in terms of playing the situation, as opposed to going out and trying to be the entertainers that they said they wanted to be. They are actually trying to win the games now which is perhaps different to what was said in their comments previously,' he said. Looking beyond, he expressed his desire to feature in the LA Olympics. 'I decided to stop playing one-day cricket so I can play more franchises, with the aim to make the Olympic team. So to play more shorter-form tournaments around the world is only going to be beneficial. It has been a long run for me and I have been doing this a long time. I am still enjoying it and particularly the shorter formats, and want to keep putting my name out there,' he said.
