Ben Stokes swallows bitter bullets to India, re -establishs memories of the 2019 WC final

Ben Stokes, Jul 14, and the Lord’s Cricket ground seem to be a combination that is infallible. No matter how good a situation the opposition is in, the England side, and more importantly, Stokes will find a way to beat you. And that fact became even more apparent to the Indian fans, when on Monday, England beat India by 23 runs, to take a 2-1 lead in the series.

Ben Stokes Tak

Now, just like the New Zealand cricket fans won’t forget the July 14, 2019, World Cup final at Lord’s, where England won despite playing a tie in the super over, India find themselves in a similar predicament. So, what had happened there? NZ first scored 241 in the final, and then England were reduced to 86/4 in the chase.

Then came in Ben Stokes, who scored an unbeaten 84 from 98 to tie the match. In the super over, which was a tie too, Kiwis scored 15/1 and then the hosts ended with 15/0. They only won on superior boundary count. Who would have thought, the match could go that way, with New Zealand dominating it for most part.

Similarly, who would have thought in the IND vs ENG Test, after the hosts were bundled out for 192 in the third innings, that India could lose, that too comfortably from there on. But perhaps Shubman Gill’s team underestimated the opposition. Right from the start of the chase, they were very much under pressure and Stokes made it worse for them with his quick fielding changes, his own bowling, and never-ending barrage of harsh words to the batters.

On the last ball of the day four, he removed Akash Deep to a magnificent delivery that castled him, and then got rid of well set KL Rahul for 39, who was the only standing between England and a win. Stokes picked up three wickets, more importantly that of Bumrah, who threatened to take the match away from the home side.

Special mention.. the skipper came up with bowling spells like never before. He bowled 9-10 over spells throughout the day, to give his side, a chance of victory. Take a bow, Ben Stokes.