Ben Stokes has been added to the England squad for the upcoming Ashes series in Australia, having recently taken time away from cricket to prioritise his mental well being and recover from a finger injury.
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Ben Stokes has been added to the England squad for the upcoming Ashes series in Australia. The all-rounder has declared himself “ready for Australia” having recently taken time away from cricket to prioritise his mental well being and recover from a finger injury he had picked up during the IPL earlier this year. In 2019, the 30-year-old played a match-winning knock to lead his side to an improbable win against Australia in the Ashes. While chasing 359, he played an unbeaten knock of 135 runs to guide his team to a one-wicket win in Headingley.
Nasser Hussain called the knock as “one of the greatest innings I have ever seen by any cricketer in Test match cricket”
Hussain also believes Stokes makes the England team more balanced and his presence will allow England to abandon an all-seam attack, if needed, in a series which is scheduled to begin in Brisbane on December 8.
On Stokes’ return, Hussain said on Sky Sports: “It’s great news for England that they have their talismanic cricketer back in the side.
“Ben is virtually irreplaceable in any format; he is one of the great all-rounders in world cricket. It is also great news for Ben himself, physically, and more important, mentally. He is going to Australia early and with pretty much full preparation for a full Ashes series, hopefully.”
Ben Stokes is the kind of player who never shies away from making a conversation on the field and is a big game player who is always willing to take on challenges.
He played a match-winning knock of 84 in the final of the 2019 ICC ODI World Cup against New Zealand. England won the title in Super Over.
“I think they will need to ease him back in with the bowling but with the batting, as long as that finger is fine, then I think he will be able to come straight back in. He is the type of cricketer you need against Australia, someone to look them in the face and take them on.
“You think of Sir Ian Botham, you think of Kevin Pietersen. Australia like to go after players that back down – Stokes definitely won’t do that. If he’s fit and available Stokes plays, and all the other pieces of the jigsaw just fall into place after that. It is great news for Leach, I would say.
“England were struggling without Stokes because he is two cricketers in one – they were almost having to pick 12. They wanted all their batters, a wicketkeeper, all their seamers and a spinner. The one that may have been left out on some of the pitches in Australia is Leach, who is the frontline spinner now with Moeen Ali retiring from Test cricket.
“Because Leach doesn’t bat as well as Moeen, they needed an all-rounder, they needed Stokes. He can now bat at No 5 or 6, with Jos Buttler at No 7 followed by three seamers and Leach.”
Hussain’s fellow Sky Sports Cricket pundit and former England captain, Michael Atherton, added: “You need a certain type of cricketer in Australia to do well there. Cricketers like Stokes and Stuart Broad.
“When Australia fans are screaming at you at Melbourne or The Gabba or wherever, you want people who are not going to be shrinking violets, people who are not going to shy away from that very difficult challenge.
“You also get the sense that [captain] Joe Root is a more imposing figure with his right-hand man Stokes there. England have got a really poor record of late in Australia, so to have one of the great players back is good for them. It is also good for The Ashes.”
The England cricket team is currently in the UAE, competing in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Eoin Morgan led side secured a convincing six-wicket win in their first match of the Super 12 stage on Saturday.
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