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Australia are all set to host England for the upcoming 2025-26 edition of The Ashes. As far as Test matches are concerned, Australia vs England has always been the pinnacle and the upcoming Ashes is going to be no different. England haven't won the urn since 2015 and they'll want to defeat Australia 'down under' to reclaim the iconic trophy.

Australia on the other hand have had a couple of injury issues and they will miss the services of their regular skipper Pat Cummins. In Cummins' absence, the home team will be led by Steve Smith in the upcoming Ashes series.

Andrew Strauss Warns Ben Stokes

Australia and mind games, this is a match made in heaven and almost every Test playing nation is familiar with how the Aussies play. There isn't shortage of drama whenever Australia and England play against each other in any format of the game. Former England captain Andrew Strauss warned Ben Stokes against Australia's mind games ploy.

'Stokes has got vulnerabilities, we know he's an emotional guy. And I think the Australians, as a nation, they're going to really try and get under his skin over the course of these five Test matches. As a captain, you need to be able to suck that up and almost show that you're unaffected,' said Andrew Strauss.

Ben Stokes will not only look to retain the urn after 10 years, but he will also want to lead England to their first Ashes win on Australian soil since 2010-11. Andrew Strauss had led England to an Ashes win in the 2010/11 edition that was played 'Down Under'.

Ben Stokes Unaffected By England's Criticism

England skipper has brushed aside all the criticism around England's preparation for The Ashes. The English cricketers have been criticized for their limited preparation heading into the high-profile series. England's Ashes preparation consists of a single three-day warm-up game against the Lions at the Lilac Hill surface in Perth.