BEN’S BACK

Bayliss tips Stokes and his Durham team-mate Wood to star in Ashes

ENGLAND will head into the Ashes confident of putting their greatest rivals to the sword thanks to a dynamic Durham duo.

The 232-run win over West Indies in St Lucia was just the tonic after two abject displays, and it was built upon the twin towers of Ben Stokes and Mark Wood who should have a big say in England’s attempt to regain the Urn this summer on home territory.

The re-emergence of Wood is an unexpected bonus since he wasn’t even picked to come on this Test tour in the first place and got his lucky break when Olly Stone went home.

But head coach Trevor Bayliss reckons it is the return to the swashbuckling style of Stokes that could be the most important aspect of the whole trip after scores of 79 and 48 not out.

“We saw Stokes go back to his free-flowing style, trying to dominate the attack,” said Bayliss. “That is what is best for him.

“Over the last 12 months we have seen him trying to play in the way that everyone wants him to play Test cricket or remembers what Test cricket is like.

“He will get the best rewards if he plays what suits him best.”

The last year has been the most difficult of Stokes’ life with his late-night Bristol incident causing him to miss six Test matches thanks to a suspension and a court case.

Since his return in the summer he has found it difficult to hit the same sort of heights as he was before the saga and Bayliss believes it could have had a greater effect on him than he’s been letting on. “It looks a little like he’s back to his preBristol form,” added Bayliss.

“You don’t know how things affect people. He is a tough character on the field and will not back down from anything. He is a leader within the team whether he has vice-captain next to his name or not.”

There was no Stokes for the Aussies to cope with last time and it showed as they romped to a 4-0 win on their own patch, but things are set to be different this summer despite the 2-1 reverse in the Caribbean.

The extra pace of Wood will be a huge asset to go with the skills of James Anderson and Stuart Broad, while Moeen Ali is in the bowling form of his life.

“We have had our problems, but so have Australia,’’ added Bayliss. “We beat India 4-1 at home last year and they have been beaten by India at home. It should be a good series.”