“I will go back and work even harder” - Ben Stokes keen on regaining full bowling fitness
England Test captain Ben Stokes has said that he will work even harder on regaining full bowling fitness to ensure that he's available as an all-rounder in upcoming assignments. Stokes also admitted that he's aware of how much his bowling helps the team dynamics.
The England captain bowled for the first time since the 2023 Ashes in the fifth and final Test of the series against India in Dharamsala. He produced a brute first ball and knocked over his opposite number, Rohit Sharma, who was on a hundred.
At a post-match press conference following England’s 4-1 drubbing against India, Stokes opened up about returning to bowling during the Dharamsala Test.
"I was just so focused to run in and get it down as hard and fast as I could. That's why you didn't see too much emotion. But I just love being back in the game with the ball in hand,” he said.
"I know how much that helps the team, the dynamic. I will go back and work even harder to make sure in the summer I'll play a full role as an all-rounder," the all-rounder added.
Stokes played as a pure batter during the 2023 ODI World Cup in India and subsequently underwent a successful knee surgery.
About the series loss to India, the 32-year-old admitted that he's extremely disappointed and conceded that India were way too good for them in their home conditions.
"I'm full of admiration for India and the beast they are in their home conditions. Obviously, a lot was said about certain (Indian) players not being here. But this series has shown the depth of Indian cricket.
"We have seen a lot of young players come in and do extremely well (for India). Since that first game, India have been the much better team, and obviously 4-1 reflects that," he said.
Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was named the Player of the Series for hammering 712 runs in nine innings at an average of 89.
Young guns Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel also made a big impact in their debut series.
“Failure is a great teacher” - Ben Stokes
While question marks have been raised over England’s ‘Bazball’ philosophy in the wake of their poor performance against India, Stokes backed the side’s aggressive mentality.
He added that England have a big summer coming up and warned teams against taking them lightly.
"Failure is a great teacher to sports teams. You either let failure and disappointment eat you up, but you can learn from failures and you make sure you don't lose the enthusiasm of what we do,” Stokes commented.
"We've got a massive summer coming up with six home Tests - Pakistan and New Zealand. I am obviously disappointed but write this team off, write me off at your own peril," he concluded.
England began the Test series in India with a 28-run triumph in Hyderabad but faltered in the remaining four Tests.