Former Australian Test captain Tim Paine has come storming in off the long runway and delivered a scathing clip to Ben Stokes.
Stokes sent eyes rolling back into the skulls of many across the globe when he declared his side “will live forever in the memory of people who were lucky enough to witness us play cricket”.
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The bizarre claim was shown during a documentary about the 2023 Ashes series, released by the ECB this past week.
The clip from after the fourth Test in Manchester, which was rained out and ensured Australia would retain the urn, quickly spread across the internet.
“Everything we’ve done up until now isn’t going to stop because we haven’t managed to win the urn back,” Stokes declared.
“The reward for our work isn’t what we get but what we become.
“And what we have managed to do is we’ve managed to become a sports team that will live forever in the memory of people who were lucky enough to witness us play cricket.
“I know it’s going to be a bit flat, I know it’s going to hurt that we go into the next game (at The Oval) not being able to get the urn back.
“But what we have done is something a lot bigger than any Ashes trophy could ever signify for this team – be the team that everybody will always remember.”
While the Ashes series ultimately ended at 2-2 with Australia retaining the urn, Paine was left stumped by the remarks from the English skipper.
Despite the bizarre nature of the comments, Paine said they fell in line with previous Bazball statements that had come out of the Poms camp.
“Oh, mate, I don’t know, I think it was taken slightly out of context because he was talking in a changing room and it was a bigger speech, so I will say that,” Paine said on SEN Tassie Breakfast.
“However, it’s just this continued belief that they’re completely changing the game and they’re doing this amazing stuff and everyone’s going to remember it … they’re not.
“You’re coming dead last in the World Test Championship. You’re not going to be a team that everyone remembers watching and you’re not doing anything outrageously good that we haven’t seen before.
“You’re an average cricket team. (Actually) you’re at the moment, a below-average cricket team and I think they need to get their head around that a little bit.”
Stokes hit back at the backlash on social media by retweeting Fox Cricket’s post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Said this to the team who had watched it rain for 2 days when we had our foot on your throats, just tried to cheer up the disappointment tbh, but anyways rent free and all that,” Stokes wrote.
Paine however said that response from Stokes showed that the Poms are believing in their own hype despite results painting a very different picture.
“Then secondly, when he replies back on X, I’m not sure who he thinks he’s actually talking to,” Paine said.
“It says, ‘We had our foot on your throats for two days, rent-free and all that’. You’re talking to Fox Cricket production. That’s not the Australian cricket team that you’re talking to.
“You didn’t have your foot on the throats of the Fox Cricket production … I don’t think you’re living rent-free in any of the Australian cricketers’ minds.
“You’re talking to a TV production. I found it quite strange that he went back at them because it would be like me going back at Sky Sports.
“It’s just strange. They’re living in a bit of a weird, strange world over there at the moment.
“Anyway, each to their own as they say.”
England has not won an Ashes series since 2015 nor won an Ashes Test match in Australia in 15 years.
Under Stokes’ leadership, the English Test side has won four of its 11 Tests played since the start of 2023.
In the same period Australia won the ICC World Test Championship, retained the Ashes in England and then won the ODI World Cup.