“Australia isn't a place for weak men” - Ben Stokes after an eight-wicket drubbing in 2nd Ashes Test

Ben Stokes hit out at England's performance after their 8-wicket Ashes loss, stating "Australia isn't a place for weak men." He admitted the team failed to stand up to pressure in key moments but vowed that his dressing room would not tolerate weakness, despite the 0-2 series deficit.

By Jack 08 Dec 2025 in Cricket

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England Test captain Ben Stokes has opened up after suffering an eight-wicket drubbing to Australia in the second Ashes 2025-26 Test at The Gabba in Brisbane. Notably, with this defeat, England are 0-2 down in the five-match series.

Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Stokes asserted that it was very disappointing to lose the pink ball Test after taking some kind of control in small passages. Despite winning the toss, England couldn’t manage to bag a win in the Brisbane Test.

"Very disappointing. A lot of it comes down to not being able to stand up to the pressure of this game, this format, when the game is on the line. In small passages, we've been able to bring the game back into some kind of control and then we've let it slip away. We've done that again here this week, and it's very, very disappointing, in particular, because of the ability of the players that we have in that dressing room," Stokes said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

"We need to think a bit harder and deeper about those moments and what we're taking mentally into those, and overall show a bit more fight when it's needed. We sit there and watch what's going on in front of us, what Australia are looking to throw at us, and what plans they're trying to bowl to. And then it's up to us as players to be able to go out there with a plan and how to negate the threat," he added.

"To me, it just seems to be a constant theme at the moment, that when you know the game is in a pressure moment, Australia keep outdoing us. They say Australia isn't a place for weak men. We're definitely not weak, but we need to find something, because we're two-nil down now we've got three more games to go, and we need to, sort it,” he concluded.

Delving into the details of the game, England batted first and posted 334 runs in 76.2 overs. In response, Australia scored 511 runs in 117.3 overs, taking a crucial lead. In the third innings, England got bundled out for 241 runs in 75.2 overs. In the chase, Australia lost only two wickets to bag an eight-wicket win and go 2-0 up in the series.

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