Ashes 2025-26 highlights, day 1: After Mitchell Starc heroics, Ben Stokes hands advantage to England

Ashes 2025-26: Ben Stokes impressed with 5/23 as England managed to restrict Australia to 123/9.

Who would have thought before the day 1 of the first Ashes Test in Perth, that the visiting England side would come out on top, so early in the Test match. As things stand at stumps, Australia are 123/9, still trailing by 49 runs, in response to England’s 172. InsideSport takes a look at all the major developments of the day.

Joe Root’s Horror Show in Australia Continues

The former England skipper is perhaps the best batter in the world currently, and averages 51, but then his struggles in Australia are real. In Perth, he was dismissed for a duck by Mitchell Starc, which means his average of 34 in AUS, dipped further. What is more surprising is, he does not have a ton in the country.

Ollie Pope & Harry Brook Save England, Starc Bags 7

7/58 is what Starc managed to restrict England to a paltry score. But in that too, Pope and Brook played a crucial role, as they went on to score 46 & 52, respectively. Jamie Smith too chipped in with 33, or else things could have been way worse for England.

Skipper Ben Stokes’ Rescue Act

Remember Ben Stokes was excellent with the ball in the IND vs ENG series, where he bagged 17 wickets at an average of 25; he seems to have carried that form in the Ashes as well, as he went on to pick a fifer giving away just 23 runs. All this in just six overs. Mark Wood and Brydon Carse too picked up two wickets each, to hand the team, the advantage.

Perth Soon Becoming Australia’s Nemesis

None of the Aussie batters has managed to score a fifty, and that reflects poorly on the scorecard. Alex Carey was the top-scorer with 26. This is pretty similar to AUS’s batting performance last year vs India as well, where they were bundled out for 104 in the first innings. Then, Jasprit Bumrah had bagged a fifer. Stand-in skipper Steve Smith’s team could suffer the same fate again.