England captain Joe Root has warned Australia they will write Ben Stokes off at their peril despite the first Test defeat at the Gabba.

Cumbrian all-rounder Stokes scored five and 14 and returned figures of 0-65 with the ball as he made his Test comeback.

The hosts surged to an innings victory but Root said Stokes, who struggled with a knee injury at Brisbane, can still make a big impact in the Ashes series, which continues with the day-night second Test at Adelaide which starts on Thursday.

Root said of the Cockermouth star: “I’m pretty sure he’ll be fit for Adelaide and one thing...you write Ben Stokes off at your own peril.

"He’d be desperate to get back into this series and have a big say in how it all turns out.”

Geoff Boycott, writing in the Telegraph, said too much was expected of Stokes in his first Test back after taking an extended break from the game to prioritise his mental well-bring and rest an injure finger.

“Ben Stokes needed to play more cricket,” Boycott said.

“He is not a messiah. He can’t bat and bowl for everyone. Ben hasn’t played for five months, had a finger operation and rain ruined his practice.

“Then his first knock was on a testing pitch against, in my view, the two best seam bowlers in the world – Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

“That would be tough for any batsman in good form. Too many players expected some magic from our talismanic all-rounder. His second innings dismissal showed his lack of cricket as he got in a tangle with a bit of bounce.

“In good nick, there is every chance he would have played it differently.”