The Ashes: All you need to know as Ben Stokes leads England's day one fight back - The Mirror

The Ashes: All you need to know as Ben Stokes leads England's day one fight back

England posted a remarkable fight back on day one of The Ashes and are likely to lead the scoring at the end of the first innings, with Ben Stokes leading the revival with a five-for

10:57, 21 Nov 2025Updated 11:14, 21 Nov 2025

Ben Stokes waves to the crowd after stumps on day one

Ben Stokes took five wickets as England launched a comeback on day one(Image: Cricket Australia via Getty Imag)

Everything you need to know about England's stunning first innings fight back as The Ashes got underway in Perth...

  • England (1st Innings): 172 all out (32.5 overs). Australia (1st Innings): 123/9 (39 overs) at stumps. England leads by 49 runs.
  • A staggering total of 19 wickets fell on the day, setting a new record for the most wickets lost on the opening day of an Ashes Test in Perth.
  • Australia's Mitchell Starc was the star of the first session, dismantling England’s batting line-up with sensational figures of 7/58, which included the key wickets of Zak Crawley, Joe Root, and Ben Stokes.
  • England's innings was built on resilience from the middle order, specifically Harry Brook (52) and Ollie Pope (46), before the side collapsed from 160/6 to 172 all out.
  • Australia's reply started poorly, with Jofra Archer striking immediately to remove debutant Jake Weatherald for a duck, followed by the wickets of Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith.
  • England captain Ben Stokes led the subsequent bowling onslaught, tearing through Australia's middle and lower order to finish the day with a stunning five-wicket haul (5/23) in just six overs.
  • Stokes' crucial wickets included Travis Head, Cameron Green, and Alex Carey, as Australia slumped from a competitive position to 121/9.
  • Australia's tail-enders, Nathan Lyon (3*) and Brendan Doggett (0*), will resume batting on Day Two, attempting to cut further into England's 49-run lead.
  • The high volume of wickets and short innings from both sides points towards a quick finish to the match.
  • LIVE UPDATES: Follow all the action as it happens in our live rolling blog throughout the first Test.

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