Ashes 2023: England captain Ben Stokes defends Australian ...

Pat Cummins has found an unlikely ally in Ben Stokes, with the England skipper labelling calls to strip the Australian of the captaincy as "unwarranted".

Key points:Cummins has been criticised for his captaincy during the men's Ashes seriesStokes says Cummins has done "a great job for Australia"The series concludes with the fifth Test at The Oval, with Australia leading 2-1

Cummins has remained unfazed by criticism in the past week, brushing aside calls from the likes of Darren Berry that he should resign as captain.

Test greats Mark Waugh and Glenn McGrath have also questioned Cummins's ability to captain and lead the bowling attack, after Australia's poor showing in the drawn fourth men's Ashes Test in Manchester.

But ahead of the final Test of the series at The Oval, Stokes was beyond surprised to learn of any calls for Cummins to step aside as Australia skipper.

"I'm not sure why someone would say he should give it up," Stokes said.

"I think he's done a great job for Australia. I don't know who has made those comments but I think he's done a great job for Australian cricket, taking over at the time he did.

"It's probably a little bit unwarranted from whoever said that, and that's coming from an Englishman to an Australian."

Cummins has made clear this week he has no plans to step aside as captain.

In his first two years in the role, Cummins has taken Australia to 11 Test wins and four defeats.

Australia has also won the Ashes at home and claimed the World Test Championship mace last month.

As a bowler, Cummins has taken 114 wickets in 20 Tests at an average of 24.61, with only a slight rise in his average compared to what it was before he became captain.

Cummins has been the first to admit he made mistakes in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, with the tourists saved by inclement weather as they retained the Ashes with the drawn result.

But Cummins said he believed he would leave England a better captain after the Ashes.

"I hope so. I've certainly been exposed to more," he said.

"Hopefully I can adapt a bit more and a bit quicker for this week. Hopefully I'm a bit better.

"I don't think I was at my best last week but hopefully I'll be better this week."

The fifth men's Ashes Test at The Oval begins at 8pm AEST on Thursday. Join Simon Smale, Jon Healy and Dean Bilton at abc.net.au/sport as they live blog all the overnight action.

AAP