The Ashes: England bowlers, led by Ben Stokes, fight back after tourists skittled for 172 by Australia on day one in Perth

Ben Stokes' five-wicket haul led a stirring fightback from England's all-pace bowling attack after the tourists were skittled for just 172 by a Mitchell Starc-inspired Australia on a breathless, 19-wicket opening day of The Ashes series in Perth.

Four years after England were rolled for 147 after choosing to bat in Brisbane on day one of the 2021/22 series, they folded again after making the same call at Optus Stadium, with their innings lasting just 32.5 overs and only Harry Brook (52 off 61 balls) passing fifty as left-arm quick Starc picked up Test-best figures of 7-58.

However, captain Stokes (5-23), Jofra Archer (2-11), Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse (2-45) all played their part in helping rip through Australia, with the hosts closing on 123-9 and trailing by 49.

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Stokes, playing his first competitive game since a shoulder injury in July, watched on as Archer and Carse reduced Australia to 31-4 - Carse with the huge scalp of Steve Smith (17) - before he removed Travis Head (21), Cameron Green (24), Starc (12), Alex Carey (26) and Scott Boland (0) as the Baggy Greens were subjected to a barrage.

Zak Crawley (0) survived Starc's first ball - unlike Rory Burns at The Gabba in the previous Ashes in Australia - but then edged the sixth behind, while Starc also nicked off Joe Root for a duck and pinned Ben Duckett lbw for 21 as England slipped to 39-3.

Root's wicket took Starc - spearheading the home side's attack in the absence of injured captain Pat Cummins (back) and Josh Hazlewood (hamstring) - to 100 Ashes scalps and he made that 104 as England wilted from 160-5, losing their last five wickets for 12 runs.

Starc, who also bowled Stokes (6) with a peach to leave the tourists 115-5, picked off Jamie Smith (33 off 22) and then the tail after Brook glanced a short ball from debutant Brendan Doggett (2-27) - just the third Indigenous man to play a Test for Australia - down the leg-side.

Smith, Carse (6) and Wood (0) were all out taking on short balls, a dangerous policy in Perth with the playing surface much bigger than the ones England's Bazballers are used to playing their aggressive game on at home, with Sky Sports' Nasser Hussain describing some of the dismissals as "soft".

England fold with the bat but flourish with the ball

The collapse will lead to questions over Stokes' team's lean Ashes prep - they played just the one warm-up game, against the England Lions on a docile surface at Lilac Hill - but this innings was largely a combination of poor decisions and Starc's excellence.

Starc's early incision and economy rate was not backed up by new-ball partner Boland (0-62), the man off whom Duckett scored most of his runs, with Doggett and Green (1-10) the other bowlers to strike for an Australia side captained by Smith with Cummins out.

Much of the talk coming into the series, mainly from the local press, centred on the fact that Root is yet to score an Ashes hundred in Australia - and he did not manage a single run in Perth after being squared up by Starc after a series of out-swingers.

Brook, who regularly charged the Australia seamers en route to a 58-ball fifty, and a composed Pope (46) put on 55 for the fourth wicket, while Brook and Smith smoked 45 from 31 for the sixth after Pope had been pinned lbw Green late in the morning and Stokes had his stumps struck by Starc early in the afternoon.

England's subsequent breakdown had Australia seemingly well on top, only for Archer to trap the hosts' second debutant, opener Jake Weatherald, lbw for a duck second ball to trigger a startling top-order wobble from the Ashes holders.

Archer forced Marnus Labuschagne (9) to chop on after tea before Carse produced searing deliveries to nick off Smith and Usman Khawaja (2) - the latter batting at No 4 instead of opening after spending time off the field during England's rapid innings - and then Stokes, as he so often does, made a big impact.

Carey, Head, Green and Starc were all perhaps guilty of gifting their wickets but Stokes' haul reiterated how crucial he is to England's hopes of winning an away Ashes for the first time in 15 years.

Atkinson and Wood, playing his first Test since August 2024 after seeing off a pre-series hamstring niggle, also rattled Australia, with the home batters hit on the body and hands as England's attack combined speed, movement and hostility.

Atkinson, who began his opening spell with three successive maidens, should have been rewarded with the wicket of Green for five, only to shell a catch off his own bowling - Green added 19 more runs before snicking Stokes behind to Jamie Smith.

Ashes series in Australia 2025-26

All times UK and Ireland

• First Test: Friday November 21 - Tuesday November 25 (2.20am) - Optus Stadium, Perth
• Second Test (day/night): Thursday December 4 - Monday December 8 (4am) - The Gabba, Brisbane
• Third Test: Wednesday December 17 - Sunday December 21 (11.30pm) - Adelaide Oval
• Fourth Test: Thursday December 25 - Monday December 29 (11.30pm) - Melbourne Cricket Ground
• Fifth Test: Sunday January 4 - Thursday January 8 (11.30pm) - Sydney Cricket Ground

(c) Sky Sports 2025: The Ashes: England bowlers, led by Ben Stokes, fight back after tourists skittled for 172 by Australia on day one in Perth