For a player who has pushed England to unprecedented heights, Ben Stokes will strap the team to his back once again and hope to carry the nation to its cricketing Everest: reclaiming the Ashes on Australian soil.

The flame-haired all-rounder has delivered repeatedly on the game's biggest stages, securing white-ball World Cups with career-defining knocks.

But leading England to Ashes triumph over the next seven weeks would leave few in doubt about the 34-year-old's place among England's all-time greats.

Only three England captains have secured the urn in Australia in the last 50 years, with Andrew Strauss the last in 2010/11.

"I've come here absolutely desperate to get home on that plane in January as one of the lucky few captains from England who have come here and been successful," Stokes told media in Perth.

"We know it's a huge task coming to Australia and everything that comes with that away from the field, on the field. It is a huge two-and-a-half months for us."

Beating Australia this time around would rank among England's greatest victories.

Strauss's 3-1 win and Mike Gatting's 2-1 triumph in 1986/87 were against modest Australian teams struggling to rebuild after the retirements of champion players.

Mike Brearley's 5-1 cakewalk in 1978/79 came against an Australian side gutted by a player exodus to World Series Cricket.

But this Australia is a different beast.

Even with captain Pat Cummins and fellow quick Josh Hazlewood absent for the first test, and an ageing squad profile in general, the world's top-ranked test side easily have enough quality to send England home disappointed again.

SOMETHING SPECIAL

It will take something special for England to wrest back the urn. For most former players and pundits, that "something" is Stokes.

"I've got him as one who will stand out down here," Australian former test quick Ryan Harris told Reuters.

"I think it's his determination. If he's back bowling the way he can, you can build your bowling attack around that.

"He bats against fast bowling and in bouncy conditions quite well. We've got to make sure we put him under pressure."

THAT MAY BE EASIER SAID THAN DONE.

Barring the last Ashes in Australia in 2021/22 when Stokes was hampered by injury and rusty after time off for a mental health break, he has proved difficult to contain.

In only his second test he scored a magnificent 120 at the WACA in 2013 and took eight wickets at the Sydney Cricket Ground in the final match of the series.

It was a dreadful tour for England, being whitewashed 5-0, but Stokes was a shining light.

In an era of Australian dominance, he has been a bulwark of defiance, producing one of England's greatest Ashes test wins with 135 not out at Headingley in 2019, a portent of the "Bazball" revolution unleashed by his ascent to the captaincy.

Stokes has not quite dominated a whole Ashes series like Ian Botham in 1981 or Andrew Flintoff in 2005 but his fitness and leadership alone through a full series in Australia would be a huge bonus for England.

Rather than play down the Ashes as just another series, Stokes is well aware what it means for his legacy and for England in general.

"This is our chance to create our own history. It's up to us how that looks.

"I'm up for every test series I play in, but I know this will probably be highlighted more than all the other series I've been a captain in."