‘He has to deliver,’ Vaughan pushes England captain Ben Stokes for Ashes urn Down Under

Former Ashes winner Michael Vaughan backs current England captain Ben Stokes to regain the coveted urn in the away Test series against Australia, starting November 21 in Perth. Most of the Ashes-bound players are currently in New Zealand playing in the ongoing ODI series, while the remaining ones are training alongside it. The Test squad will assemble in Western Australia on Monday, where England Lions will join them to prepare for the three-day game starting November 13, eight days before the series opener.

Considering England’s last Test win Down Under came 14 years ago during the memorable 2010/11 away Ashes and that they have lost 14 Tests since (in Australia), Vaughan feels Stokes, with his mentality, will break this deadlock and upset the mighty Aussies in their den.

Predicting the series result (2-2), Vaughan says England are bound to do better on this tour, and that Ben is the right man to help them realise their dream of bagging another Ashes win in Australia.

"I think they need a trophy," Vaughan said while speaking at the Viagogo event. "I mean, would I take two-all now? Probably, let's be honest. In the last few series, 2010-11 is the only time that I've seen England have success. We won one Test match in 2002-03; we won three Test matches in 2010-11. We haven't won a Test since. So, actually looking at growth in terms of what English cricket is delivering and, if you could get a two-all series, you'd obviously take that.”

"But I think Ben and his mentality, and the way that he plays his cricket, this is his moment. He has to deliver, and he has to get that urn in his hand. And it's not putting him under pressure. They'll be speaking in this kind of language in the dressing room. They will expect to win this series, and now's the time to deliver,” he continued.

Here is England’s Ashes squad –

Ben Stokes (captain), Harry Brook (vice-captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue and Mark Wood