The English skipper was the lone warrior for England on Day 2 of the third Test.
England have reached a point in the Ashes series where nothing is working for them. Or rather, they aren’t making it work. Either way, it is a lot of flak to take for Ben Stokes & Co. Like the two Tests which have been played till now, the visitors have been dominated on all fronts in the third Test as well. After letting Australia off the hook with 371 runs, England are now reeling at 213/8 with 158 runs behind their arch-rivals.
After Jofra Archer registered a stunning five-wicket haul in the first innings, England’s batting order collapsed after a decent start. Zak Crawley was the first to depart with the team score on 37. Within no time, England were reduced to 42/3 and then 71/4. This has been a problem which has troubled the Three Lions for a considerable amount of time, let alone this Ashes series.
Former Australia head coach Justin Langer has come out in support of Ben Stokes, stating that the England skipper’s resolve has been outstanding. But unfortunately, his teammates have not come out to support him in either of the three Test matches till now. Walking out at No.6, the England skipper is unbeaten on 45, having faced 151 deliveries, showing that there is nothing wrong in the conditions – but with the way England have applied themselves.
“He’s the captain and I know the strike-rate is down. But it is very hard to row an 11-man boat by yourself. I see it throughout the series. He’s trying so hard for his team. But he’s just got no one going with him. In contrast, Australia have 11 guys all working together”, said Langer on air.
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Alone, not at all! It is no secret that Ben Stokes will need the support of his teammates to revive the Ashes series, and he would need that soon. England are on the brink of another Test loss in the series, which would take the urn away from them yet again. With a huge trail of 158 runs in the first innings, the Three Lions are clearly looking down the barrel.
The clear differentiator between the two sides has been the fact that the Australians have played like a team. It is not about the skill, but the application. Mitchell Starc, who was the best performer in the two previous Tests, was used only for 12 overs, and did not bag a single wicket. Despite that, the Aussies have managed to scalp eight wickets and push England on the backfoot.
The English batters have not played anywhere close to their potential, and have not trusted their defence at times, leaving too many loopholes in their technique for the Australians to exploit. Pat Cummins, who was unavailable for the first two Tests due to injury has returned like he was never out of the game. He bagged three crucial wickets in the 14 overs that he bowled, including the most vital scalp of Joe Root.
If Ben Stokes & Co. have to go anywhere close to making a comeback in the Test and series, they will have to play out of their skins. With this Australian side breathing down their neck, it is only going to get steeper to climb for the visitors. The primary target would be to get as near as possible to Australia’s 371, which in itself looks too far for the Englishmen.
The fact that Ben Stokes is playing at a strike-rate which was once punishable as per the Bazball norms has not been any different. The English skipper was always known to play keeping the situation in control, and has been forced to do the same, keeping what the team requires ahead of himself. Stokes has been the only batter in this innings who has displayed trust in his defence.
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