Former England captain Michael Atherton said that Ben Stokes has been struggling against Jasprit Bumrah’s pace despite being an “excellent player of fast bowling”.
Prior to the ongoing series between India and England, Stokes had never got out to Bumrah in 6 Tests, but he has had his troubles of late while facing the Indian speedster.
In 2 Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam, Bumrah got Stokes’ number 2 times. And both times, the 32-year-old Stokes was dismissed ‘bowled’.
“Picking with the speed of the ball is tough with him, and I’ve noticed with Stokes, even Stokes actually is an excellent player of fast bowling. He’s hurried with Bumrah,” Atherton told Sky Cricket.
“He struggles to pick up the pace, and a couple of times when he’s got him, it looks as though the ball has kept low, which has but it also almost beaten him for pace as well. I think that’s the issue with Bumrah,” he added.
How have Bumrah and Stokes performed?
Bumrah has been on top of his game as he is the leading wicket-taker of the series. The speedster has 15 scalps to his name from 2 matches and also became the No.1 ranked Test bowler on Wednesday.
Bumrah also became the fastest Indian pacer to reach the landmark of 150 wickets in Tests. The Yorker he bowled to Ollie Pope also gained a lot of attention.
Bumrah picked up a 6-wicket in the Vizag Test, helping India beat England by 106 runs to draw level in the 5-match series.
As far as Stokes is concerned, he has threatened quite a bit, but is yet to be at his very best. The left-handed batter has scored 134 runs from 2 matches at an average of 33.5 with a top score of 70 in the first Test at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
The third Test is set to start on February 15 at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot.
Tune In
