Combined Australia-England Ashes XI

5. Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes’s Test career started in the second Test of the 2013-14 Ashes in Adelaide. In his debut Test series, England faced a drubbing at the hands of the hosts but the New Zealand-born England player looked decent in both batting and bowling departments. 

Racking up 279 runs and 14 wickets in eight innings of four matches, he played his part efficiently. After the 2013-14 Ashes, his next eye-grabbing performance came in the blockbuster rivalry in 2019. This time, the Aussies played quality cricket on English conditions and succeeded in retaining the urn by levelling the series by 2-2.

For the English side, things could’ve gone worse if Ben Stokes had not rescued England with his unbeaten 135-run knock in the third Test at Leeds. While chasing 359, England were nine down on 286 and the defeat looked inevitable for the hosts. However, Stokes, who was batting excellently, held his nerves and stitched an unbroken 76-run partnership with Jack Leech for the tenth wicket to help his team cross the line.