Delhi: England batsman Ben Duckett has warned Australia before the Ashes series. He said that captain Ben Stokes is in full ‘beast mode’ at the moment and is continuously working hard to prepare for the series.

stokes in beast mode

Stokes is so far among only three all-rounders in men’s Test cricket history who have scored more than 7000 runs and taken more than 200 wickets. Along with him in this list are great players like Gary Sobers and Jacques Kallis.

Stokes’ name is remembered for his historic inning of 135* runs played in the Headingley Test of 2019. Once again, he is expected to lead from the front and help England win the Test series in Australia for the first time since 2010-11.

Duckett warned Australia

“We’ve been here for a few days and Stokes is in complete beast mode. He’s running, bowling two spells, batting for two hours. The way he trains is like I’ve never seen before,” Duckett said on the Willow Talk podcast.

Duckett said that Stokes is the most important player for the England team and expressed hope that he will remain fit for the entire series.

He said, “When Stokes bowls, he becomes the most important player of this team. Hopefully he plays all five Tests and bowls in every match because he is very important for us.”

The English batsman also told that the England team will make its strategy according to the circumstances during the series. He said, “Sometimes, like in Perth, it is important to just survive the last five overs of the day. I did the same against India last year. It does not matter how many runs are scored, it is important to stay at the crease till morning.”

It is noteworthy that the Ashes series will start from Friday, November 21 with the first Test to be held at Perth Stadium.