Stokes says teammates’ mental health the ‘main concern’ amid scrutiny on England players’ lifestyle

An emotional England captain Ben Stokes on Wednesday said the mental well-being of his players was his main priority heading into the last two ‍matches of the Ashes series.

The England players have come under heavy criticism since Australia wrapped up an 82-run win in the third Test in Adelaide on ‌Sunday to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series and retain the urn.

Media and social media reports of some players taking a “stag party” attitude to a trip to the Queensland resort of Noosa between the second and third Tests have only added to that weight of pressure.

Team director Rob Key on Tuesday promised to look into reports of excessive drinking in Noosa, and Stokes said it had all left him with a big job to do in his role as the protector of the players.

“With the reports and everything circulating around ⁠right now, my main concern right now is my players,” he told reporters at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where the fourth Test starts on Friday.

“How I handle this moment right now is the most important thing to me. The welfare ⁠of everyone in there, and probably certain individuals as well, is the most important thing to me right now.

“This kind of stuff is something that I have firsthand experience with, how it can affect people. And my role as ‌England captain is to protect my players as much as I possibly ‌can.

“I will always protect my players as much as I possibly can. And right here, right now, that is my main job as ‍England captain.”

Stokes has been open about the mental health issues he has faced during his career and took a lengthy break from cricket in 2021 to focus on his ‍well-being.

That followed his trial on charges of affray after being involved in a street brawl in Bristol in 2017, video of which appeared on social media.

He was acquitted in court but fined and suspended by the England & Wales Cricket Board for his part in the incident and posting of the “inappropriate video” on social media.

“It’s never a nice place to be when not only the media world but also the social media world is just piling on top of you,” Stokes said.

“It’s a very tough, tough, tough place to ⁠be in as an individual, and when you know you’ve got the support of the people who are sort of leaders, it’s very good to know that you’ve got that support.”

Stokes appeared to be more concerned with the ⁠impact of the leaked video on social media than with the more mainstream criticism of England’s cricket.

“When you are 0-3 down, and you’ve lost the series, everything you say, everything you do, gets scrutinised, and rightly so,” he said. “You don’t really have a leg to stand on when you’ve lost three games in a ⁠huge series like this.”