Another ex-England star wades into Ben Stokes argument as Ashes preparations slammed

Ex-England star Mark Butcher reckons that criticism is all part of the job as Test captain, following a heated debate over Ben Stokes and his side's preparations for The Ashes. It comes as England are set to kick-off their crunch series with Australia in Perth on Friday, with plenty of tensions flaring in a historic cricket rivalry.

Stokes will have a challenge on his hands to try and win back the urn, something his side haven't done since 2015, while they haven't won Down Under since 2010/2011. With that in mind, preparation is key, but there's also been a clear dispute between past England players and the current captain about what the best preparation is.

The tourists decided that they would only play one warm-up match, which was an in-house three-day friendly, coming in stark contrast to the old touring teams, who would play a few more matches. Criticism from notable figures such as Ian Botham and Michael Vaughan over the lack of fixtures led to Stokes hitting back - calling the former players "has-beens" before defending the stance.

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Another former player, Butcher, has now responded to the claims from the England captain, telling Boyle Sports: "Facing criticism from former players is part of the gig - so the fact that Stokes has decided to rise to it and have a bit of a pop back is interesting, but that's his character anyway. You'd expect him to stand up for his own team and stand up for the decisions that they've made and live and die by that.

"The interesting thing is that in my line of work, you have to be able to be honest in terms of what your opinions are, but always look at it from the point of view that there's a constructive point to what you're saying. You don't just have a pop at people for no particular reason, at least.

"That's all just part and parcel of it - so when pundits and other people are asked questions they're meant for the public. And if there's a team that gets under your skin, then that perhaps is more your problem than it is anybody else's, but I honestly wouldn't pay too much attention to it."

England ended up beating the England Lions by five wickets in their one and only warm-up match, with all eyes now fixated on their crunch opener in Perth. If the pre-tour comments and the 2023 Ashes are anything to go by, then it promises to be a fiery encounter between the two old foes.

There has been a competitive edge between the two sides, not least after Alex Carey's controversial run out of Jonny Bairstow. Butcher himself remembers just how intense The Ashes can be.

He added: "I remember on my first Ashes tour getting off the plane in Australia, you'd be collecting your baggage from the carousel, and I remember them just taking every single piece of kit out of the coffins [bags].

"They're spraying your bats and spraying the soles of your shoes and basically treating you like criminals from the second you arrive - and that was when you went; 'Okay, this is how it's going to be'!

"You're going down there for a 2-3 month tour, and it's like being involved in a London Derby, like Arsenal vs Tottenham, for three months on the spin. That's the level of scrutiny and interest - newspaper stories and everybody in the country is interested in The Ashes and there isn't anything like that anywhere else. Even in India, you get a little bit of a break from it.

"It's not as in your face, but in Australia, The Ashes are treated on a different level to anywhere else."