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Following their disappointing eight-wicket loss to Australia at The Gabba on Sunday, Ben Stokes and his England teammates have been unwinding with a few drinks at the renowned Queensland destination, Noosa. This scenic beachside retreat comes in the wake of England falling behind 2-0 in the Ashes series, putting their chances of clinching a victory in Australia for the first time in 14 years in serious jeopardy.
From engaging in a round of golf before the upcoming Perth Test to a run-in with Queensland police for riding e-scooters without helmets—breaching local road laws—the England squad, often referred to as the ‘Bazballers,’ have been under intense scrutiny since their arrival in Australia. Their latest escapade has once again drawn mixed reactions from fans.
On Tuesday, coach Brendon McCullum drove Stokes and three other team members to the coastal town, where they paused to enjoy some sushi before heading to the sun-soaked Noosa Main Beach.
Stokes, along with Mark Wood—who has been ruled out for the rest of the series due to a persistent knee injury—were spotted basking in the sun at the beach. The England captain even took a moment to enjoy the waves with a refreshing swim in the sea.
Stokes and Mark Wood, who has today been ruled out of the remainder of the series due to a recurring knee injury, were pictured relaxing and soaking up the rays on the beach, with the England skipper taking a quick dip in the sea.
Ben Stokes (pictured) and his England team-mates have been enjoying a beachside getaway to the popular Queensland tourist hotspot Noosa
Will Jacks, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook and Gus Atkinson were pictured enjoying a few beers at the popular Noosa bar Rococo Bistro on Tuesday
England went 2-0 down in the series, following their eight-wicket defeat at The Gabba on Sunday
The captain and the fast bowler later caught up with several of their team-mates, including Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson and Will Jacks for a few quiet drinks at the Rococo Bistro.
Other players, including Matthew Potts, Jofra Archer and Shoaib Bashir arrived to join the group later in the afternoon.
Naturally, some Aussie newspapers were quick to fire a dig at the Bazballers.
The West Australian writes: ‘Already 2-0 down in the Ashes after just six days of cricket, the woeful Poms soaked up the Queensland sun in the latest leg of their summer pleasure jaunt Down Under.’
The outlet adds: ‘After gallivanting around golf courses in Perth and joyriding without helmets on E-scooters in Brisbane, England favoured rest and relaxation for their latest mid-series break.
‘They looked a little more like naughty schoolboys when they became aware of the cameras on them, staring down the barrel with grim expressions.’
The West Australian also mocked the tourists on its back page on Wednesday after Wood was ruled out of the remainder of the series. The masthead published a glum-looking picture of the fast bowler with the headline: ‘Wood not want to be them right now,’ a play on the Durham seamer’s name.
The subheading added: ‘Poms’ tour somehow gets even worse.’
England cricket legend David Lloyd also criticised the tourists’ decision to travel to Noosa, claiming if he was in the England team, he’d be getting back in the nets instead of heading to Noosa.
‘I don’t think I’d be going to Noosa. I’m a bit old-school, it’d be naughty boy nets,’ he told BBC Sport following the second Test defeat on Sunday.
Jofra Archer (centre) also arrived later in the afternoon and laughed and joked with his team-mate Carse (right)
It comes as England had also raised eyebrows after they were seen playing golf in the build-up to the first Test in Perth (Pictured: Stokes, left, Matthew Potts, right)
Shoaib Bashir (right), who is yet to play in the Test series, arrived to join the group later in the afternoon
England have been scrutinised for their preparations in the build-up to the series, with former players, including ex-skipper Michael Vaughan, questioning why England did not play in a pink-ball warm-up match in Canberra ahead of the second Test
Jacks (pictured), who was drafted in to play during The Gabba Test, was seen wearing a fedora and a pair of sunglasses
‘There are definite consequences to this. There always has been, there always will be.
‘There will be consequences and those start with those in charge.’
Noosa is one of Queensland’s premier holiday destinations, with many touring England fans travelling up to the Sunshine Coast town this week in the wake of the Perth Test.
The players were seen stopping to take selfies with members of the public, as they walked along the beach towards the bar.
Stokes’ side are expected to return to training in the coming week, ahead of the third Test in Adelaide on December 16.
While widespread scrutiny has followed them, the Bazballers have struggled to find their form in Australia, with pressure mounting on the England skipper and his players to deliver in Adelaide as they bid to salvage the series.
Stokes justified England’s decision to take some time away from the nets on Sunday by claiming that it was important for his players to spend some time away from the cricket field to refresh themselves.
‘Trust me when I say it is so-so important that teams when they do get an occasion or an opportunity to be able to go away as a team and just put the pressures of this [game] aside for a couple of days,’ he said.
The West Australian also mocked the tourists on it’s back page on Wednesday after Wood was ruled out of the remainder of the series
England will spend the next few days enjoying a break from cricket, before they return to the nets to prepare for their upcoming match in Adelaide, which begins on December 16
Archer (pictured) was embroiled in a sledging match with Steve Smith on Sunday, with the stand-in Australia skipper claiming that the England pace bowler ‘only bowls fast when there’s nothing going on.’ It came as Archer had bowled much slower during Australia’s first innings
Stokes (right) was seen soaking up the rays alongside his team-mate Mark Wood (centre), who has been ruled out of the remainder of the series with a knee injury
The England skipper(right) also enjoyed a quick dip in the sea at Noosa Main Beach with Wood (left)
It comes after Brendon McCullum had claimed that England had ‘overprepared’ ahead of the Brisbane Test
But former England captain Michael Vaughan has been particularly scathing of England’s preparations in the build-up to the series, branding their decision not to play a pink-ball warm-up match in Canberra ahead of the second Test as ‘amateurish’.
Instead, the team chose to spend five days in the nets. On Sunday, McCullum also ruffled the feathers of a few fans and former England players, claiming that the tourists were not feeling fresh and had been ‘overprepared’.
‘I actually felt like we over-prepared to be honest,’ McCullum said.
‘We had five intense training days and sometimes when you are in the heat of the battle, as we all know, sometimes the most important thing is to feel a little bit fresh and make sure your top two inches (brain) is completely sound.’
McCullum added: ‘I think the boys just need a few days off and we probably need to change up a few of the training methods.
‘I’m a horse racing man and you wouldn’t just keep doing the same thing with your horse.
‘You would send it around in figure eights or over the little jumps just to try and switch it on. We will look at some alternative methods over the next few days.
‘We have got a couple of days in Noosa, which will be good to spend a couple of days casually, and let the dust settle on what has been a pretty intense couple of weeks and start to plot and plan our way back into the series.’
The players donned their swimming trunks, wrapped their towels around their necks and took a stroll along the beach
England had also been criticised for playing golf in the build-up to the Perth Test and during the days after
After England were embarrassingly beaten in just two days, some members of the touring party, including Zak Crawley and Joe Root, were again seen taking to the fairways on what should have been days four and five of the Test match
England legend David Lloyd criticised England for taking some time off to head to Noosa, stating: ‘I don’t think I’d be going to Noosa. I’m a bit old-school, it’d be naughty boy nets’
Members of the public stopped the Bazballers to grab a quick picture while they were on the beach
But upon learning that England were heading to the Sunshine Coast after the Brisbane Test, some England fans were not happy.
‘Enjoy Noosa while thousands of England fans have p***ed their hard-earned money down the drain watching you p****s,’ one fumed on social media.
Another asked: ‘I’m all for relaxation but wtf is this?’
England have also continued to deploy their brash and aggressive Bazball brand of cricket in Australia, despite calls from some pundits to play more conservatively.
There were signs that attitudes were shifting during England’s second innings in Brisbane, with Stokes and Jacks digging in at the crease as they attempted to rescue their second innings. The pair put together a partnership that was longer than both of their innings in the Perth Test, with Stokes bringing up a half-century before both players were dismissed.
Geoffrey Boycott, meanwhile, was another who did not hold back in his assessment of England’s performance in Brisbane, claiming that the Bazballers were stuck up their own backsides.
‘Brisbane was a horror show: irresponsible batting, bowling too short, too wide or too full and catches dropped,’ Boycott wrote in his column in The Telegraph.
‘England talk the talk but can’t walk the walk. With this sort of batting and bowling, they couldn’t win an egg cup.
England’s batters failed to deliver during The Gabba Test, while their bowlers struggled to take wickets. Their woes were compounded further by their issues in the field, with England dropping five catches during Australia’s first innings
Carse (pictured) struggled to find his rhythm during the Brisbane Test, but would go on to take four wickets at an expense of 152 runs
‘Ben Stokes said England had a blueprint. They had been planning this tour for four years and know what they are doing. What a load of bulls***. We can’t believe anything Ben or his team say. None of them want to listen to anyone outside of their own camp.
‘They are up their own backsides convinced that Test cricket has changed so much that only they know anything about the modern game.’
Boycott also fired a veiled dig at Stokes for his comments, branding England’s legends, Vaughan, Ian Botham and Boycott, ‘has-beens’ after they criticised England – comments that Stokes later apologised for.
He claimed that no one within the squad is ready to ‘tell them off or sit them down and discuss what they could or should have done differently’.
Boycott then added: ‘But what do I know? I am just a has-been who did four England tours of Australia, winning two Ashes series and drawing the other two.’
Stokes, meanwhile, defiantly stated that his side will not be shying away from the task at hand, with England’s hopes of ending their 14-year wait for an away Ashes victory now hanging by a thread.
But the England skipper conceded that his side must be stronger when it comes to handling pressure as they look to close out matches.
‘When the game is on the line, teams are able to handle that pressure better than us,’ the England skipper told TNT Sports on Sunday.
‘We are a great team when we are ahead, when we are behind and playing huge catch-up we are great, but when the game is on the line, we are not able to stand up to pressure. That is obvious as a captain.
‘It’s a mentality, a mindset. How you get yourself into a headspace to make clear decisions is so important to be successful at this level.
‘No one means to drop catches or not bowl where you are supposed to but those things cannot happen at this level.’
