‘Playing for England means so much’
An emotionally drained Ben Stokes struggled to express how he felt after he was instrumental in England securing a 31-run win over India in the first Test at Edgbaston.
Stokes claimed three of the five wickets England needed to beat India including the huge scalp of India skipper Virat Kohli who has been in ominous form.
The England allrounder is likely to miss the second Test against India due to his scheduled court appearance relating to charges of affray levelled against him for his role in the highly publicized alleged street brawl in Bristol last September.
Stokes was delighted to be part of the win – a win England were predicted to get with the new uk betting sites – but it was clear that he was conflicted.
He said after the match: “I thought we are a bit behind with the lead but Sam Curran took them out of play, the way that he played at such a young age, that was the big turning point of this test match.
“It’s great to be a part of this game, but I dunno…I don’t know what to be feeling right now.”
ALSO READ: Kohli credits England’s tenacity at Edgbaston
Stokes put the dismissal of Kohli down to an error on the batsman’s part in playing his outswinger.
He said: “Throughout the whole innings…Kohli played a brilliant knock in the first innings, but with the ball swinging he was trying to move across to play for that inswinger but actually the one that I was trying to swing away, he maybe leant over and missed one for a change.
“Moments like that change the game in these tight ones.”
Stokes took the winning wicket amplifying the emotion of the moment and he struggled through a post-match chat with Ian Ward.
He said: “I’m proud to be part of this group, playing for England means so much, and it’s a great start to this tough five-match series. And being 1-0 up we’re in the box seat at the moment
“We weren’t quite sure what to expect here. Knew we needed five wickets and we had all the confidence, These games are brilliant. We’ve copped a lot of stick as a team recently and beating a team like India there has closed a few mouths.
“Winning those tight games, you can’t under-estimate what it gives teams for confidence. We’ve got a five-Test match series here, so we’ll take all the confidence we can. No better way to start it off than that.”
Latest
-
England
England will not adopt negative approach after humbling in India – Zak Crawley
England will aim to get ‘Bazball’ back on track this summer against West Indies and Pakistan.
-
Australia
On this day in 2018: Australian trio banned after ball-tampering saga
The trio were handed their punishments on March 28, 2018.
-
County Cricket
Surrey stars eager to help Alec Stewart sign off with more silverware
Stewart has guided Surrey to three County Championship wins during his decade in charge.
-
Women's Cricket
Maia Bouchier smashes 91 as England Women seal T20 series victory
England made 177 for three and then restricted New Zealand to 130 for seven.
-
County Cricket
Yorkshire boosted by Harry Brook and Joe Root’s early-season availability
Both players are not at the Indian Premier League.
-
England
Ollie Pope ‘itching’ to get back scoring runs after ‘frustrating’ tour of India
The England vice-captain hit a superb 196 in Hyderabad, but averaged only 14.75 in the next four Tests of the India series.
-
Women's Cricket
Ellyse Perry says Ashes Test at MCG ‘amazing’ but unsure about four-day return
Australia will host England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the Women’s Ashes early next year.
-
County Cricket
Harry Brook set to return for start of Yorkshire’s County Championship campaign
Brook withdrew from England’s Test tour of India in January due to personal reasons.
-
England
England spinner Tom Hartley expects his exploits in India to be ‘life changing’
Hartley’s second-innings haul of seven for 62 in Hyderabad delivered one England’s greatest ever overseas victories.
-
Women's Cricket
Heather Knight urges more composure from England after New Zealand collapse
The tourists needed just 29 from 29 balls with eight wickets in hand.