"Huge game, we're walking out there playing for England" : Stokes ahead of Sydney Test
Jan 03, 2026
Sydney [Australia], January 3 : England captain Ben Stokes has urged his team to give it their all in the final Ashes Test in Sydney.
Stokes wants his players to focus on team success, saying that whoever goes out there this week will do everything they can to support the team.
Australia are already 3-1 up in the series. England was hammered in Perth, Brisbane, and Adelaide, but then won an astonishing two-day Boxing Day Test in Melbourne to earn its first victory in Australia in 15 years.
The last match of the series will start tomorrow at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
"Whoever goes out there this week, everything they do and every decision they make will be about what the team needs," Ben Stokes said as per Sky Sports.
"One thing you don't want to see, and I don't think I will, is anyone coasting through this game. This is a huge game, we're walking out there playing for England, and it's going to take all 11 of us to go out there and get a result," he added.
"Australia get to lift the urn, and they've won the Ashes, but every time you walk out and play for your country, regardless of the opposition, regardless of where the series is at, it's just as important," he concluded.
After snapping an 18 Test winless streak in Australia at Melbourne, England finally have something to cheer about in Australia during an Ashes series and would be aiming to add one more win in front of their team's name and take a flight back home with a respectable 2-3 scoreline which would let them keep their head high even though the wait for first Ashes series win in Australia since 2010/11 continues.
England squad for the fifth Ashes Test: Ben Stokes (captain), Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Josh Tongue.