England captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum reacted to the visitors’ Ashes 2025-26 series loss. This happened after England lost the third Test in Adelaide of the five-Test series. Australia had already won the first two Tests in Perth and Brisbane.
Ben Stokes said on Sunday that losing the Ashes in 11 days "sucks," but vowed that England would come back stronger in the next two tests in Melbourne and Sydney.
Its defeat in three Tests is a long cry from the pre-Ashes hoopla, which predicted a hard-fought series, with Australia proving superior in all areas. Stokes admitted as much but said the defeat hurt nonetheless.
“We came here with a goal in mind, and we’ve not been able to achieve that. It hurts, and it sucks, but we aren’t going to stop,” Stokes said, as per AFP.
England, asked to chase 452 runs, showed good fight in the end, with Jamie Smith (60), Will Jacks (47), and Brydon Carse (39*) taking them to 352 runs, as Australia won by 82 runs.
On the other hand, Brendon McCullum stated that the team played well and showed great application.
“I think the boys were excellent today. They showed some great application. They bounced off each other and tried to take the game as deep as they could. We didn’t get there, but I thought it was a fine achievement,” Brendon McCullum stated.
England had more tenacity in Adelaide after losing by eight wickets in Perth in two days and Brisbane in four, but the team has struggled to meet the key moments throughout the series.
Stokes stated that the biggest difference between the teams was "constant execution," with England lacking Australia's unwavering quality.
“Australia has just been able to execute things on a way more consistent basis than us. Both with the ball and the bat, and in the field. They’ve been able to outdo us on a much higher level,” Stokes stated.
McCullum put it down to Australia making better decisions in pressure moments.
“For us, from the get-go, it has never been about scoring rates. It is about respecting what is coming at you and being present in the moment. You identify what the levels of risk are, but also what the opportunities are, and make sure you know how to counter that,” McCullum added.
“Be able to apply pressure when you need to and absorb pressure when you need to. I don’t think we have got that balance right in the previous encounters in the series. If we had cottoned on to that earlier, we would have been more competitive,” he added.
The fourth Test between Australia and England will be played from December 26 onward in Melbourne.
