'Sea legs meant I couldn't bowl' - when England travelled to Australia by boat
From the Ashes is a series of features and podcasts which dig deeper into stories from cricket's fiercest and most legendary Test series. Full interviews can be found on BBC Sounds, building up to ball-by-ball coverage of the first Test between Australia and England in Perth on 21 November.
Distance is a huge part of the Ashes romance - cricket's oldest rivals separated by 10,000 miles; half the world away, the ultimate sporting pilgrimage.
Ben Stokes and his England class of 2025-26 experienced Australian hostility as soon as they touched down. The captain was splashed across the front page of The West Australian on his arrival in Perth.
At least Stokes and his men travelled down under in ultimate comfort - airport lounges, business class, beds in the sky (perhaps not restful for Mark Wood, a terrible flyer).
