Latest news with #Stokes'
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Gus Atkinson shines but inconsistent England fail to punish India at Oval
Gus Atkinson set the standard for a revamped England attack on day one of the deciding fifth Test against India but injury and inconsistency among his fellow bowlers stopped the hosts taking control. Atkinson was handed his first appearance of the series on home turf at the Kia Oval, returning from a hamstring injury with little more than a club appearance for Spencer CC and one tune-up for Surrey's second XI under his belt. But in the absence of Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse – the captain out injured and the latter pair rested – Atkinson stood out from the crowd on an otherwise erratic performance from the hosts. He took two wickets and swooped to run out danger man Shubman Gill for 21, with India scrapping to 204 for six in bowler-friendly conditions. There was a late sting in the tail for the hosts as Chris Woakes suffered a suspected dislocated shoulder in the field. His participated in the rest of the match looks highly doubtful, placing an even bigger burden on a fragile seam unit. While Atkinson took the opportunity to remind the selectors what they have been missing over the past four games, bowling with pace and discipline for figures of 19-7-31-2, it was a different story for England's other returning quicks on the most helpful surface of the summer. The recalled Josh Tongue turned in a perplexing performance, sending down a baffling pick'n'mix of wayward deliveries punctuated by two virtually unplayable balls that accounted for Sai Sudharsan and Ravindra Jadeja. Both batters were undone by gems, speared in from round the wicket and seaming just enough to flick the edge. Beyond that he lacked any sense of control, frequently failing to make India play and sending down three separate sets of five wides. Jamie Overton, back for a second cap three years after his first, was also wayward and lacked cutting edge as his 16 overs cost a leaky 66. Although England's position at the end of a rain-reduced day was respectable, they were guilty of making poor use of the murky clouds and a green-tinged pitch offering good pace and carry. Stokes, Archer and Carse, all of whom spilled plenty of sweat on lethargic tracks, must have been cursing their bad luck. Stokes' stand-in Ollie Pope benefitted from Gill's fifth consecutive loss at the toss and eagerly inserted the opposition as the floodlights kicked into action. Atkinson was on target from the off at a venue he knows well, snaring Yashasvi Jaiswal lbw courtesy of a judicious DRS referral. It was Pope's first ever successful review, ending a streak of 14 unsuccessful calls, and he celebrated just as much as his bowler after ending that sequence. Woakes, the sole ever-present in the English attack, picked up a second when the dogged KL Rahul was drawn out of his comfort zone and chopped a cut shot into his stumps. But a lack of consistent pressure from Tongue and Overton allowed India to wriggle off the hook to 72 for two when showers brought an early lunch. The teams did not get back on until 3pm and they were off for rain again less than half-an-hour later. But that slim window was all Atkinson needed to make his presence felt again. He was bowling to India's emphatically in-form captain Gill when a ridiculous attempt to steal a single presented an opening. Sudharsan refused to be the sacrificial lamb and sent Gill back, allowing Atkinson to extend his follow-through, pick-up and hurl down the stumps for a gift of a wicket. Gill had arrived at the crease on 722 runs at an average of just over 90 for the series – within sight of Sunil Gavaskar's Indian record of 774 – and departed courtesy of a dreadful self-inflicted wound. The weather eventually cleared to allow an extended final session and England picked up another three scalps despite continuing with their hit-and-miss offerings. At his worst Tongue looked well below the level but on two occasions he mustered something the great James Anderson would have been proud of. Sudharsan and Jadeja, who did not know which side of the wicket the next ball was coming from, could do nothing but succumb. Atkinson followed up with a hard-earned second, Dhruv Jurel fencing to Harry Brook at second slip one ball after surviving a tight lbw shout. Woakes' injury, which saw him crying out in pain after he tumbled retrieving the ball on the boundary rope, left England with a headache to resolve as Karun Nair ticked off a calm 52no to nudge his side past 200.
Sydney Morning Herald
21 hours ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘It's great cricket': Angry, abrasive England an Ashes goldmine for CA
'Everyone will have their opinion when our English friends arrive I'm sure, and we're looking forward to that very much. I love the way they're playing their cricket and I can't wait to see them test themselves on our shores.' CA has trumpeted the prospect of England bringing a record-breaking summer of attendances and TV ratings given the interest in Stokes' side. Every opening day of the five Ashes Tests across Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney is now sold out. Ticket allocations for days 1-3 at the Gabba, Adelaide Oval and SCG have also been exhausted. Pre-sale tickets for Ashes Tests more than doubled those of last summer's Border-Gavaskar series, when 837,879 fans turned out for the highest attended Test campaign in Australian history outside of the Ashes. The all-time attendance record for a Test series on home soil stands at 946,750, which was set during the 1936-37 Ashes when Sir Donald Bradman was in his pomp. England's tour from November will be the first Ashes clash since the enthralling 2023 series, in which Australia retained the urn and fallout from the infamous Lord's Test dominated coverage. While Stokes was a notable withdrawal from England's fifth Test against India due to what is tipped as a 10-week shoulder injury, Greenberg and CA chair Mike Baird's immediate focus is sifting through the advice of an independent report on privatising Big Bash League franchises. Recommendations from the Boston Consulting Group that will be considered by CA powerbrokers include a later start to the BBL season from Christmas to February and how to ensure Australia's stars turn out in the domestic T20 tournament. Loading Greenberg and Baird stressed an open mind will be kept on the prospect of selling off stakes in BBL clubs, though Greenberg emphatically dismissed any suggestion of the MCG and SCG Tests being shifted from their Boxing Day and New Year's Eve slots. 'They've been anchored for a long period of time and you'll only have to turn up to these Test matches this year to see the scale that they bring to cricket,' Greenberg said. 'So there's been no discussions about moving them.'
The Age
21 hours ago
- Sport
- The Age
‘It's great cricket': Angry, abrasive England an Ashes goldmine for CA
'Everyone will have their opinion when our English friends arrive I'm sure, and we're looking forward to that very much. I love the way they're playing their cricket and I can't wait to see them test themselves on our shores.' CA has trumpeted the prospect of England bringing a record-breaking summer of attendances and TV ratings given the interest in Stokes' side. Every opening day of the five Ashes Tests across Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney is now sold out. Ticket allocations for days 1-3 at the Gabba, Adelaide Oval and SCG have also been exhausted. Pre-sale tickets for Ashes Tests more than doubled those of last summer's Border-Gavaskar series, when 837,879 fans turned out for the highest attended Test campaign in Australian history outside of the Ashes. The all-time attendance record for a Test series on home soil stands at 946,750, which was set during the 1936-37 Ashes when Sir Donald Bradman was in his pomp. England's tour from November will be the first Ashes clash since the enthralling 2023 series, in which Australia retained the urn and fallout from the infamous Lord's Test dominated coverage. While Stokes was a notable withdrawal from England's fifth Test against India due to what is tipped as a 10-week shoulder injury, Greenberg and CA chair Mike Baird's immediate focus is sifting through the advice of an independent report on privatising Big Bash League franchises. Recommendations from the Boston Consulting Group that will be considered by CA powerbrokers include a later start to the BBL season from Christmas to February and how to ensure Australia's stars turn out in the domestic T20 tournament. Loading Greenberg and Baird stressed an open mind will be kept on the prospect of selling off stakes in BBL clubs, though Greenberg emphatically dismissed any suggestion of the MCG and SCG Tests being shifted from their Boxing Day and New Year's Eve slots. 'They've been anchored for a long period of time and you'll only have to turn up to these Test matches this year to see the scale that they bring to cricket,' Greenberg said. 'So there's been no discussions about moving them.'
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
‘Ben Stokes has out-bowled Jasprit Bumrah': Vaughan's staggering claim after India pacer claims two wickets in 33 overs
Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has made a staggering comparison between Ben Stokes and Jasprit Bumrah as India trail the five-match series 1-2 with one match left to play. Both Stokes and Bumrah have grappled with fitness issues in recent years, with recurring injuries periodically keeping them out of action and raising concerns over workload management. Stokes, captain of the England team, has played in the first four Tests, while Bumrah was rested for the Edgbaston clash to manage workload. Ben Stokes is the leading wicket-taker in the series followed by Jasprit Bumrah.(PTI Images) Meanwhile, Stokes, who has not bowled enough in the last few years, has been bowling in full throttle in the ongoing series and outclassed everybody with the most wickets so far - 17. Meanwhile, Bumrah, who has played a match less, has claimed 14 scalps in his kitty. Vaughan called Bumrah the greatest seamer but also claimed that Stokes has managed to outbowl him in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. "He does things no-one else can. I think Jasprit Bumrah is the greatest seamer I've seen. Well, Stokes has out-bowled him in this series and been better than anyone else. He gets back-spin, has an awkward angle, and a great ability to know exactly how to bowl on a surface, and hit the one spot on the pitch that can cause trouble, as he did to KL Rahul on the final day against India at Old Trafford," Vaughan wrote in his column for the Telegraph. Stokes claimed a five-wicket haul in the first innings at Old Trafford, while Jasprit Bumrah only managed to claim a couple scalps in 33 overs he bowled. 'Cannot remember an individual as vital to a team's hopes as Stokes' Vaughan hailed Stokes as the most indispensable figure in the current England setup. Drawing comparisons with legends like Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff, Vaughan emphasised that Stokes' all-round abilities and leadership make him central to the team's fortunes like no one else before. "There have been teams in the past who have been very reliant on individuals. Ian Botham, of course. When I was captain I had Andrew Flintoff. But having worked his way back to fitness with the ball and finding form with the bat, not to mention his captaincy, I cannot remember an individual as vital to a team's hopes as Stokes is to this England team," he wrote.
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
England captain Ben Stokes points finger at India after refusal to shake hands
Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar's unbroken 222-run stand ensured India claimed a bore draw at Old Trafford in the fourth Test, with sights now switching to The Oval Ben Stokes fanned the flames after India refused to shake hands on a bore draw to let two batters reach their hundreds, saying: 'They had done the hard work.' Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar's unbroken 222-run stand thwarted England as the fourth Rothesay Test at Old Trafford petered out. But they insisted on playing on into the last hour, with Jadeja on 89 and Sundar on 80, even though England skipper Stokes had withdrawn all his big guns from the attack. After India closed on 425-4, losing just two wickets in the last 142 overs, Stokes was asked if he would have pulled up stumps with two of his batters within sight of three figures - in Sundar's case, a maiden Test hundred. He said: 'That partnership was massive, they played incredibly well, but I don't know if there would have been too much more satisfaction walking off 100 not out than 80 or 90. 'Ten more runs or whatever doesn't make a lot of difference when you have saved your team from defeat. I think all the hard work had been done. It got to that point where there was only one result and there was absolutely no chance I was going to risk any injuries to the fast bowlers with one more game to go in four days. 'We threw absolutely everything at them, and they were able to live up to the pressure.' Stokes, named player of the match for the second successive Test after his 5-72 and 141 in the first innings, admitted he was feeling 'pretty sore' after managing to bowl only 11 overs yesterday because of a sore bicep. But he is determined to declare himself fit for Thursday's final Test at The Oval with England leading the series 2-1, saying: 'I'm not going to lie, I have been better, but pain is just an emotion. 'I am an all-rounder and it has been a big week this week with overs and spending a bit of time out in the middle, and the workload has obviously gone up. 'But with our wanting to eat my words, the likelihood that I won't play at The Oval is very unlikely. It's been a big five or six weeks, but I'll always try to run through a brick wall for the team. "When you put in good performances for the team, the joy is dictated by how you feel at the end of the Test and the result. Obviously, I'd give away the bottle of champagne and the medal in a heartbeat if we were on the right side of the result.' India captain Shubman Gill, who scored his fourth century of the series, defended India's decision to bat into the last hour so Jadeja and Sundar could both complete their hundreds. They did so against some joke bowling and after snubbing Stokes' offer of handshakes at 386-4. Gill said: 'A Test hundred is a Test hundred at the end of the day - we thought they deserved a century and we thought three or four (more) overs isn't a lot of overs.' India coach Gautam Gambhir concurred: 'Would they (England) have walked off if one batter was on 90 and the other was on 85? Both those guys deserved a hundred.'
