It’s about recreating the mindset that has threatened to change the way Test cricket is played: Hussain

Former England captain Nasser Hussain believes that the Ben Stokes-led side’s toughest task will be maintaining their aggressive approach even in times of danger. England will host Australia in the Ashes 2023, which will take place from June 16 to July 31. Ahead of the Ashes, England will play Ireland in a one-off Test at the Lord’s Cricket Ground which will begin on June 1, Thursday. 

The England skipper has maintained that his team will continue to operate in the same manner even though the opponents in the five-match series are Australia. Since taking over as captain and coach of the England Test team, Stokes and Brendon McCullum have insisted on an aggressive strategy, which has brought decent results over the past ten months. 

Hussain believes that England's summer will be assessed by their performance in the Ashes this summer. He went on to say that the hardest task for the captain and coach would be to keep playing as if nothing is at stake, even though they know that it is.

Stokes and McCullum will be to keep playing as if it doesn’t really matter: Hussain

Interestingly enough, this remark comes in the vein of what if England happen to lose some wickets early and then still manage to keep up the tempo of the innings? In fact, not long ago, the Australian pacer Mitchell Starc too put forth an important question for the hosts. He challenged the sustainability of the 'Bazball' in the game by citing an example. He asked how the English team will fare if they happen to be 50/5 at some stage of the game. 

"Clearly England’s summer will be judged on how they get on in the Ashes, though, and the biggest challenge for Stokes and McCullum will be to keep playing as if it doesn’t really matter, even though they know deep down that it does," Hussain wrote in his column for the Daily Mail.

He continued by saying that, for the time being, the focus should be on recapturing the mentality that has the potential to alter how Test cricket is played. The 55-year-old continued by saying that if Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum are successful, England may be in for a very exciting summer.

"For now, it’s about recreating the mindset that has threatened to change the way Test cricket is played. If Stokes and McCullum can succeed in that, we could be in for one hell of a summer," the Chennai-born concluded.