Multan [Pakistan], October 15 (ANI): Ahead of the second Test against Pakistan at Multan, England skipper Ben Stokes, who will be making his return to the side after an injury, said that he has no doubt that he would be able to bowl and “make an impact” if needed.
England will be looking to strengthen their chances of making it to the finals of ICC World Test Championship even more stronger as they take on Pakistan in the second Test of the three-match series at Multan. In the first Multan Test, Pakistan had suffered a humiliating loss by an innings and 47 runs. Stokes will be making his return to the side as a full-fledged all-rounder after recovery from hamstring injury sustained back in August during The Hundred tournament in UK.
Stokes has been managing his bowling workload since his knee surgery last year after the 50-over World Cup. He played the World Cup and matches leading up to that as a specialist batter due to knee issues.
He started bowling during the fifth and final Test against India in March at Dharamshala, bowling five overs. During the Test series against West Indies in July, Stokes increased his bowling workload considerably, often bowling 10 overs in an innings. He took five wickets in the series.
In the first Test, England became the first team to ever take a first innings lead of over 200 runs after conceding over 550 in the first innings. Pakistan by contrast became the first team to lose a Test match by an innings after scoring over 500 runs in the first innings, thanks to England’s 823/7d, the fourth-highest Test innings total of all time, and the highest in the 21st century.
Speaking ahead of the match in the pre-match press conference, Stokes talked about Pakistan’s tactic of using the old surface from the first match, saying that he has not seen something like this before.
“I have never seen a used pitch before, used in back-to-back games – and I have never seen fans that big standing as umpires. You would like to think it is going to offer the spinners a bit more than it did last week with it being used and hot. It is a slightly drier square, so you might see a little more reverse-swing to bring seamers into the game… Hopefully, we win the toss and bat,” said Stokes.
The England captain hailed the stand-in captain Ollie Pope, who led the side to three wins in four Tests and a series win against Sri Lanka in Stokes’ absence since August due to a hamstring injury. He said that getting an experience of captaining as a youngster and a top-order would be great for Pope in the long-run.
“For such a young player who has got quite a lot of experience now, having that exposure to being a top-order batter but also captain will be really, really good for him in the long-term and I think he has done a great job. His winning percentage is better than mine. I think – winning three out of four Tests – he has done a great job and should be very proud of what he has achieved while I have been injured,” said Stokes.
For the match, England have named two full-fledged spinners, with Jack Leach being Shoaib Bashir’s partner-in-spin. Joe Root will be providing assistance with his part-time spin, with expectations of the used surface favouring spinners. Stokes pledged to be sensible with his bowling workload and said that playing on a used wicket made his decision to return “easier”.
“Playing on a used wicket made the decision (to comeback) a little bit easier. I am available to bowl and when I sense the time is right for me to come on and make an impact, there would not be any doubts in my mind that I can come on and bowl. You would like to think it might be a bit more in favour of the spin, hence playing on a used pitch made the decision a little bit easier,” said Stokes.
He also hailed the entire team for “embodying” togetherness and the idea of team-over-individual on the field, something which has been central to the ‘Bazball’ approach of cricket under him and head coach Brendon McCullum in Tests.
“When you are out in the middle, there are a few things you do not get the chance to see or observe because you are thinking about other things, but when you are actually sitting on the sidelines, you realise how committed everyone out on the field is to the very small things that me and Baz (McCullum) constantly ask of everyone,” Stokes said.
“Running after the ball to the boundary, backing the bowlers up, all the small things that in the bigger picture mean a hell of a lot.When the bowlers are bowling in this heat and see the ball hit through the field and someone sprinting chasing after it to stop a boundary, pulling out a dive… they do not always get there, but it is that sense that we are all in it together which is one of the most notable things for me, especially when you are the person trying to deliver those words.”
“When you get to stand back and watch it in action, you realise that what you are saying is working and is really hitting home with these guys. There is no individual bigger than the team and I have really noticed that the 11 guys out in the field really embody that,” he concluded.
The result of the first Test moved England to fourth on the World Test Championship table to keep hopes of a Final spot alive, and consigned Pakistan to last place in the standings with a possible points percentage of just 16.67 per cent.
England (Playing XI) for the second Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (capt), Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir. (ANI)
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