Alastair Cook says England have to smarten up quickly in Ashes series

Ahead of the third Ashes Test in Perth this week, Alastair Cook has warned England they must 'smarten up' after a string of off-field incidents Ahead of the third Ashes Test in Perth this week, Alastair Cook has warned England they must 'smarten up' after a string of off-field incidents

Alastair Cook says England have got "to smarten up" and "do it quickly" as they prepare for the third Ashes Test in Perth on Thursday.

England have been beset by off-field problems before and during the tour, which began with Ben Stokes' arrest outside a nightclub in Bristol in September.

Then two episodes, six weeks apart but played out in the same Perth bar, attracted further negative publicity.

First, Jonny Bairstow made all the wrong headlines with his misjudged 'headbutt' greeting for Australia opener Cameron Bancroft; then, five days ago, Lions batsman Ben Duckett chose to pour a drink over all-time national leading wicket-taker James Anderson's head.

Cook, who will become the first Englishman to reach 150 Test caps when he tries to help Joe Root's side come back from being 2-0 down with three to play, is convinced England have not helped themselves.

Ahead of the third Ashes Test in Perth this week, Alastair Cook has warned England they must 'smarten up' after a string of off-field incidents

"The world obviously changed for the England cricket team in September," said Cook. "Those last two incidents have proven there is very little margin for error when you've had a beer.

"We've just got to smarten up, and we've got to do it quickly - because there's too much at stake."

The former captain knows what it is like to play to an unappreciative audience, having won the Ashes in 2013 only to discover most people were disengaged.

"We won an Ashes series 3-0, but the public weren't happy," he added. "There was a disconnect between the players and the public, and in the last four years we've made a massive effort to get that connection back. The last couple of months have damaged that."

England have missed Ben Stokes in the Ashes series

He added: "Not many people play 150 Test matches - so to do that, and at the top of the order, I'm quite proud.

"[But] my job is to try to get England off to a good start - and on this tour I have struggled. We've got the biggest game of our lives coming up and we've got to scrap unbelievably hard for the five days."