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Tag: Ben Stokes

  • T20 World Cup: Stokes deflects praise despite final half-century

    Ben Stokes says England’s bowling attack was the key factor in their victory over Pakistan in the T20 World Cup final on Sunday, despite his crucial half-century.

    Sam Curran (3-12) and Adil Rashid (2-22) bowled superbly to restrict Pakistan to just 137-8, though England’s chase did not get off to the greatest of starts as openers Alex Hales and Jos Buttler were removed within the powerplay.

    Stokes came in with England 32-2 after 3.3 overs, but smashed a sublime 52 off 49 deliveries to record his first ever T20I half-century and help his country to their second T20 World Cup title.

    Stokes was keen to highlight England’s bowlers as the reason for the win at the MCG in Melbourne, telling Sky Sports: “I think when you chase totals in games like this, you forget the hard work that goes in before.

    “I thought the way that we bowled, Adil Rashid, Sam Curran, that’s what won us the game. To restrict them to whatever we did, bowlers have got to take a lot of credit for that.

    “We didn’t feel under too much pressure with the run chase. I never felt it was out of our hands at all. It’s never really panic stations when it’s under eight an over.”

    England’s triumph comes after a shock defeat to Ireland in the group stage that threatened to derail their tournament, having come in as one of the favourites.

    Stokes referenced that loss after the final victory, saying: “I think with that [Ireland defeat] being so early in the competition, we obviously had to address it, say what we said and then let it go.

    “In tournaments, you can’t carry baggage. That was a little blip, but the best teams learn from their mistakes, they take it on the chin but they never let it affect them and they just let it go and move onto the next challenge.”

    England’s success comes in new captain Jos Buttler’s first tournament since taking over from previous incumbent Eoin Morgan, who led the team to ODI World Cup glory in 2019.

    Stokes says Buttler has built on Morgan’s good work to create history of his own, adding: “Jos has now created his own legacy.

    “When the great man stepped down [pointing to Morgan] and Jos took over, you look how quickly he’s managed to take control of the team and progress it from the legacy that Morgs [Morgan] has left.

    “He’s a guy who everyone follows. I think it shouldn’t be taken for granted how hard it can be to make tactical decisions under pressure in this format. Ninety-five per cent of his decision-making he’s got right. We’re lucky to have him.”

  • Brook and Stokes fire England to victory over Pakistan in final warm-up match

    Harry Brook and Ben Stokes impressed as England stormed to a six-wicket triumph over Pakistan at the Gabba in their final warm-up fixture before the T20 World Cup.

    Pakistan set England a target of 161, led by opener Shan Masood top-scoring with 39 runs off 22 deliveries, while David Willey impressed with the ball by taking two wickets for England.

    England opener Phil Salt was bowled by Naseem Shah for just one run, but a rapid innings from Stokes (36 off 18), coupled with Liam Livingstone’s 28, put England in good stead to secure victory by the time of their dismissals.

    Brook scored 45 not out from 24 balls and Sam Curran smashed an unbeaten 33 from just 14 to finish the job as England chased down Pakistan’s total in just 14.4 overs.

    England middle order impresses

    With their openers producing a combined 10 runs off 16 balls, it fell on the middle order to win England the match, and they did so in thrilling fashion.

    Stokes, Livingstone, Brook and Curran smashed the ball to all areas and accounted for all 12 of their team’s sixes.

    Each of that quartet finished with strike rates of at least 175 to help England to a morale-boosting victory before their World Cup campaign gets underway against Afghanistan on Saturday.

    Jordan improves after tough start

    Pakistan ended up on 160-8 from 19 overs, with the match shortened slightly due to a brief rain stoppage.

    They had threatened a bigger total, with Chris Jordan smashed for 27 off his first two overs without taking a wicket, but the England bowler steadied the ship to finish with figures of 1-36 from four, including a final over which went for just three runs and included the wicket of Mohammad Wasim (26).

    Jordan’s bowling at the death ensured England’s target was achievable, and they then chased it down comfortably.

    Source: Livescore

     

  • James Anderson & Stuart Broad eyeing Ashes, says Ben Stokes

    Veteran pace bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad have “got their eyes set” on next summer’s Ashes, according to England captain Ben Stokes.

    Both were dropped for England’s tour of West Indies in March but returned to play a key part in Stokes’ side winning five of their six Tests this summer.

    Broad will turn 37 during the Ashes, while Anderson will be almost 41.

    “I honestly just can’t see a point where they decide it’s time for them to step away,” said Stokes.

    Anderson and Broad, England’s all-time leading wicket-takers, will line-up for the deciding Test against South Africa at The Oval, beginning on Thursday.

    Anderson has taken 24 wickets at an average of 17.66 in Test cricket this summer, while Broad has 22 at 31.90.

    “Jimmy has come out and said how much fun he’s had and Broady’s influence in the dressing room is the best I’ve seen while playing with him over the years,” added Stokes.

    “The conversations he has had not only with me but the other bowlers, how he wants to help them and stuff like that is something he’s taken to another level.”

    England are scheduled to play only five Tests this winter – three in Pakistan in December and two in New Zealand in February.

    Given the conditions in Pakistan, both Anderson and Broad could be used sparingly, or not travel at all.

    England will then play one Test against Ireland next summer before the bid to regain the Ashes from Australia in June and July.

    If Anderson does play next summer, it would mark 20 years since his Test debut, against Zimbabwe at Lord’s in 2003. He has taken 664 wickets in 174 matches.

    Broad made his bow in 2007 and has since taken 559 wickets from 158 caps.

    “It’s great to see Jimmy at 40 and Broady at 36 having a new lease of life in the dressing room and honestly I can’t tell you when the end will be,” said Stokes.

    “We’ve got the Ashes coming up next summer and I’m pretty sure they have got their eyes set on that.”

  • Roy dropped as England name T20 World Cup squad

    Opener Jason Roy has been dropped from England’s squad for the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia but bowlers Mark Wood and Chris Woakes are fit to return.

    England Test captain Ben Stokes is included despite missing all of England‘s T20s since March 2021.

    White-ball captain Jos Buttler will miss the start of the tour of Pakistan, with Moeen Ali deputising as skipper.

    England play seven T20s in Pakistan from 20 September before the World Cup starts on 16 October.

    Roy, 32, has been an integral part of England’s white-ball success in recent years, but has endured a poor summer.

    His highest score in his past 11 international innings is 43 and he managed only 51 runs in six innings for Oval Invincibles in The Hundred, including three ducks.

    “He’s a hit a bad patch of form at the worst time,” said England managing director Rob Key, who confirmed Jonny Bairstow will be promoted to open with Buttler.

    “I don’t see that this is Jason’s T20 career over. We still see the 50-over format as his strongest suit, so still see him as very much a part of that set-up.”

    England have included five uncapped players in a squad of 19 for the series in Pakistan, while the squad for the World Cup is trimmed to 15, with three travelling reserves.

    Buttler’s side play three matches against hosts and defending champions Australia before the tournament. England’s campaign begins against Afghanistan in Perth on 22 October.

    England, the 50-over world champions, were beaten semi-finalists in the last T20 World Cup in 2021 and reached the final in the previous edition in 2016.

    This will be their first global white-ball tournament since 2014 without the leadership of Eoin Morgan, the former captain who retired in June.

    Both Wood, 32, and Woakes, 33, last played for England on the Test tour of West Indies in March. They return from elbow and knee surgery respectively and boost an injury hit pace-bowling department that remains without Jofra Archer.

    “They are back in with fingers crossed,” added Key. “The likelihood for Wood and Woakes is they will start getting fit at the back end of the Pakistan trip.”

    Stokes, who continues to be available for T20s despite retiring from one-day internationals, is rested for the tour of Pakistan, which begins little more than a week after England’s final Test against South Africa at The Oval concludes. Bairstow is also rested for the Pakistan tour but he too will join up with the World Cup squad.

    Liam Livingstone is another missing the Pakistan leg as he continues to recover from an ankle injury, while World Cup reserve Tymal Mills (toe) will also go straight to Australia.

    Buttler has a calf injury, but is expected to be fit for the latter stages of the Pakistan series. His absence means Moeen, whose family originates from Pakistan, will have the honour of leading England on their first tour of the country in 17 years.

    Key confirmed England’s intention to tour Pakistan despite the floods that have devastated large parts of the country. England pulled out of a trip to Pakistan last year citing “increasing concerns about travelling to the region”.

    “It’s a trip we’re desperate to go on,” said Key. “It’s going to take a lot for us not to get out there.

    “Hopefully us going out there and playing will be a positive story in what has been a pretty harrowing time for the people of that country.”

    Warwickshire quick bowler Olly Stone, who has played three Tests and four ODIs for England, makes his return to international cricket from a back injury as part of the quintet of uncapped T20 players for the Pakistan tour.

    He is joined by Middlesex pacer Tom Helm, Lancashire left-arm fast bowler Luke Wood and batters Jordan Cox and Will Jacks of Kent and Surrey respectively.

    England squad for the Men’s T20 World Cup: Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood. Travelling reserves: Liam Dawson, Richard Gleeson, Tymal Mills.

    England squad for T20 series in Pakistan: Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Liam Dawson, Richard Gleeson, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, Luke Wood.

    Source: BBC

  • Stokes admits he nearly gave up playing cricket amid a mental health hiatus

    Ben Stokes has admitted that when taking a sabbatical from the game to prioritize his mental health last year, he worried he might never play cricket again.

    Stokes, who was named the Test captain for England in April, missed five months of competition in 2021 due to panic episodes.

    The 31-year-old had previously battled after hurrying his rehabilitation from a broken figure, so he took a period of compassionate leave to spend time with his father before his dying in December 2020.

    Ahead of the airing of an Amazon Prime documentary detailing Stokes’ experiences throughout that time, he recalled how his decision to step away from cricket was the culmination of a long-term battle.

    “It wasn’t a case where it was a two-week thing or a couple of months thing, the whole thing was a build-up over a long, long period of time, maybe two, three, four years,” Stokes told the BBC.

    “It was like I had a glass bottle I kept on throwing my emotions and feelings into. While I was doing that, the bottle was filling up to where, eventually, it got too full and just exploded. I reacted in the way I did and felt like, ‘I need to get away from here’.”

    Asked whether he considered calling time on his playing career, Stokes said: “At the time, yeah, that’s where I was at. It was a very, very tough time.

    “One of the more powerful things that I notice from the film, was when Stuart Broad was on camera and he said the same thing, he actually said he could see me not playing again.

    “I had never spoken to Stuart about that through my time away. I spoke to him a lot through that period but just general chit-chat, nothing too serious.

    “I had never said the words to him, ‘I’m not sure if I’m going to play again’, but the fact that he got that feeling was an eye-opener to me that at that time, things were quite bad.”

    After assuming the captaincy in April, Stokes oversaw four consecutive victories, three against New Zealand and one against India, before England were thrashed within three days by South Africa at Lord’s last week.

    While Stokes believes his early success as skipper vindicates the decision to take a break, he was left irritated when his struggles became a talking point after his appointment.

    “When Joe [Root] stepped down and the opportunity was there for me to take it, I was actually quite annoyed about some of the press around it, because they linked the England captaincy and my mental health break with each other,” he added.

    “It felt like people were saying I couldn’t do the job because I decided to take a break for mental health last year.

    “What’s that got to do with being England captain? If anything, it shows that you can do anything, even if you have decided to take a break, it’s fine.

    “I did an interview where I’d give off this bravado of being a big tough northern lad with tattoos. I am tough, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t struggle mentally.

    “These things, you can’t pick and choose when they’re going to hit you. It’s not like a switch in your brain, going, ‘today I’m going to feel good, tomorrow I’m going to feel bad’.”

    Stokes is also keen to ensure his willingness to talk about his mental health acts as an inspiration for younger generations, adding: “We all know that as England players, we’ve got more responsibility than just going out and performing on the field.

    “Young kids these days will look at us and want to play like us, they’ll want to do what we do because that’s who they look up to.

    “If I was to shy away and not speak about anything that I’ve gone through, I don’t think I would be doing the responsibility that’s been set on me. Shying away is something I would never do.”

    Source:livesoccer.com