Ben Stokes admitted that England have been ‘outplayed’ by India in the recently-concluded 5-match Test series. On Saturday, the visitors slumped to a defeat by an innings and 64 runs in the 5th Test at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.
England started the series after winning the Hyderabad Test by 28 runs, but since then, Stokes’ men lost 4 Tests in a row in Vizag, Rajkot, Ranchi and Dharamsala to concede the series 1-4.
Stokes, who lost his maiden Test series as captain, said that England had their chances, but failed to put India under enough pressure. | IND vs ENG, 5th Test scorecard
“Since the first Test match, we’re man enough to say we’ve been outplayed. We’ve got so much cricket coming up, taking the positives is something I’m looking forward to and driving this team forward. There have been small moments when we’ve not been able to wrestle momentum back.
“It’s about trying to understand those moments and be a bit more relentless,” Stokes said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
‘Anderson is as fit as I’ve ever seen him’
England had moments to rejoice on Day 3 of the 5th Test after James Anderson became the first pacer to pick up 700 wickets in Test cricket. Stokes hailed the speedster as an inspiration for budding fast bowlers.
“Amazing to be on the field. 700 wickets as a seamer is phenomenal. He’s someone every young kids looks up to and want to emulate. He’s as fit as I’ve ever seen him. Great to watch,” Stokes said.
Stokes lauded Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Shoaib Bashir, Tom Hartley and Joe Root for their contributions in the series. Crawley scored over 400 runs while Hartley bowled a match-winning spell in the Hyderabad Test.
The 20-year-old Bashir picked up back-to-back 5-wicket hauls while Root found form in the latter half of the series.
“Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett continued their formidable partnership. Shoaib Bashir and Tom Hartley showed their quality. We’ve seen Joe Root come into form,” Stokes added.
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