James Anderson urges England to focus on Ashes despite Ben Stokes controversy
James Anderson has asked his England teammates to remain focused ahead of the Ashes series against Australia albeit the absence of all-rounder Ben Stokes from the side. The 35-year-old has also stated that he will work on his bowling to help his team give a strong competition to the Aussies.
Ben Stokes and his teammate Alex Hales were arrested at the end of the last month on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm following an apparent fight outside a Bristol nightclub. They have been since suspended from international cricket until further notice. England and Wales Cricket Board are yet to make a decision regarding their inclusion in the squad for the upcoming Ashes tour, and Anderson has asked his team to focus more on their performance ahead of the series amidst the uncertainty of the all-rounder.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, Anderson told, "When we won the Ashes in 2010/11, we didn't win it with 11 players - we won with 13/14/15 players.The biggest thing for us is we get 15 or 16 players to be on top of their game when we get to Australia and be able to perform for our team.
"Once we get there, the only focus will be beating Australia... It's just a case of being strong enough and having that tunnel vision to focus on the individual and as a team and what will help the team win the series,” said Anderson.
Anderson has played 129 Tests for England so far, in which he claimed 506 wickets. The 35-year-old reclaimed his number one position in the ICC Test ranking last month as he helped England seal a series win over West Indies.
"My own focus will be on my bowling and what I can do to help the team and I'm sure all the other individuals in the side will do that. If we can do that then I'm sure we'll galvanise and put in a strong performance," Anderson added.
The first match of the series will be played on November 23 in Brisbane.
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