England chief coach Trevor Bayliss said anyone in the line-up has to rise to the occasion following the absence of all-rounder Ben Stokes, who has been a cornerstone for the Three Lions.
“Someone else is going to have to step up,” Bayliss was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.
The 54-year-old Australia-born Bayliss reiterated losing a player of high calibre in the form of Stokes is a major loss for the side.
“Not having someone like Ben in the team will be a loss,” Bayliss maintained.
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Pertinently, the 26-year-old Durham-based Stokes is facing the legal charges after thrashing the 27-year-old Ryan Hale during a Bristol street-fight in September when he was enjoying alongside teammate Alex Hales in one of the nightclubs.
Concurrently, Bayliss is with the 16-member squad owing to the thorough Ashes preparations, as England reached to Perth on October 29 without availing the services of Stokes this time around.
However, Bayliss believes he is hopeful that players would yield desired results after the massive setback.
“A good player can have an injury and you would be without them anyway, so we have just prepared with the guys that we have got here,” Bayliss added.
Stokes, who has been the vital cog in the England set-up, is yet to hear the ruling after being quizzed by Avon and Somerset police which further led England Cricket Board (ECB) – to ban the player till further orders.
England members are training hard in Perth before beginning their five-match Test series with Gabba Test on November 23.
Bayliss played 58 first-class matches in which he scored 3,060 runs at an average of 35.58. Photo Credit: Getty Images.
As players would be aiming to make most on the Australian soil, the suspended player Stokes made way for the lanky fast bowler Steve Finn while the investigation is still going on.
Considered as a major blow of losing Stokes, Bayliss admitted the fact by saying the side would face a tough challenge.
“Any team that loses one of their better players is not going to be quite the team they may have been,” Bayliss further added.
Interestingly, the visitors will face-off Western Australia in the warm-up fixture on November 4, as skipper Joe Root made it clear that players have a potential to deliver big.
Moreover, Bayliss echoed the words of fast bowler Stuart Broad, who also remarked players are there to perform and anyone could change the complexion of the game.
“We have just gone about things as we normally have,” Bayliss concluded.
On the other side, batsman James Vince believes England has a squad which could further prove fruitful in Australia.
Vince was picked alongside Gary Balance after both struggled with the form in the recent past.
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With eyebrows already raised on Stokes’ behaviour, England quad would be on the radar in Australia owing to the culture of the team.
However, Root is more sort of defensive in approach as a leader and visitors are eventually supposed to shoulder the responsibility off from the field too.