‘Incredible’ Stokes put body on line for England, says Root
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — England Captain Ben Stokes put his body on the line to inspire his side’s dramatic victory over India at Lord’s, according to teammate Joe Root.
Stokes took five wickets, scored 77 runs and delivered a crucial run-out of Rishabh Pant in two innings of relentless effort from the all-rounder.
Driven on by Stokes, England won the third Test by 22 runs on a pulsating final day to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.
Most remarkable of all was the workload that the injury-prone Stokes put his body through as he bowled 44 overs in total, including gruelling spells of 9.2 and 10 overs on the decisive final day.
It was the most the 34-year-old has bowled in over six years and came after two severe hamstring injuries in the past 12 months.
Root watched on in awe, remembering his own attempts to stop Stokes pushing himself past the limit during his own captaincy.
“You can try, but it doesn’t make any difference. I tried for five years,” Root said.
“I mentioned it, but he doesn’t always listen to me. He didn’t listen to me when I was captain!
“That’s his call now. It was an incredible effort to be able to do that, but that’s just how he’s built, I guess. He’s just desperate to be the man and make things happen.
“It’s a great sign for us moving forward, it really is, because that’s back to his best. He’s got that mentality and that desire to win games and we’re lucky to have him as our leader.”
At one stage in the first innings, England Head Coach Brendon McCullum sent a message via bowling consultant Tim Southee, instructing his skipper to take a breather.
Root admits he was also concerned that Stokes might hit breaking point, but now accepts that there is only one man who truly knows how far he can go.
“I was just panicking that he wasn’t going to make it through the game after a couple of bad injuries, but he clearly trusts his body now,” he said.
“He knows what he’s doing and he’s got a good handle on where he’s at physically.”
After the match, Stokes admitted his tiredness, telling reporters that he could not wait to “just lie on my bed for four days and then be raring to go for [next week’s fourth Test in] Manchester”.
The Old Trafford Test is scheduled to start on July 23.
