England vs India: Ben Stokes explains why Ollie Pope was chosen over Jacob Bethell for first Test | Cricket News

slick1 minute ago

0 0 3 minutes read

England captain Ben Stokes says it would be “remarkable” to forget a player who scored 171 in his last test game after Ollie Pope was selected against Jacob Bethell for the first test against India.

The Pope has been kept at n ° 3 for the Leeds test, Live on Sky Sports From Friday (first ball of 11 a.m.), after marked 171 in the Zimbabwe flashes in Trent Bridge in May.

Bethell missed this match when he was in IPL service for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, but an impressive start for his career in England had led him to be immediately restored.

The 21-year-old seemed assured by scoring three fifty-fifths of position n ° 3 in New Zealand during the winter in his first series of tests and also shone in the recent white ball games against the Antilles, especially with an 82-ball of 53 balls in the first international international.

Bethell’s left arm rotation may also have been a useful option with hot temperatures likely to produce dry terrain, but vice-captain Pope received the head sign, compared to one side against which he is only 24.6, against his 35.49.

“”[The] The great selection did not come from us. It would be remarkable to choose someone else if his last blow was 170. That’s about everything I need to see on this, “said Stokes.

When he was asked how Pope had managed the additional exam around his position, he added: “Nowadays, it is very difficult not to see all the speculations that surround him because of the ease with which things are accessible. You don’t even need to seek to see it these days.

“I think that scoring 170 in his last test game shows how much he can manage this additional examination and this comes with an territory. When you are an international player, it comes with it.

“This is one of these things, when you are a child, you dream of playing for England and it is an incredible thing. The other side is, you can be under the pump for that.

“It is part of the territory and manipulates it. It will always come at some point of someone at some point.”

Stokes: I can’t wait to go

The series in five tests of England against India precedes their tour outside the Ashes later this year, where they have not won for almost 15 years.

Stokes had been sidelined since December after having torn his left ischi-legs in New Zealand, but returned last month to the dominant victory of England on Zimbabwe.

“Physically, when I was 20, I didn’t even know what stiffness was! I am 34 years old and everything is naturally a little more difficult to do,” said Stokes on his physical form.

“I worked hard to be where I am today. Physically, where I am great. I’m impatient to go. I’m just a little more sensitive to my accumulation. I work hard for the first two days of training, two days are very refrigerated than the day before to make sure that everything is ready to spend the day of the match.”

India is heading to the unknown under the new captain, Shubman Gill, and without icons Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, but Stokes says that England does not underestimate their adversaries.

“It was long to wait. We had different preparations for different people,” he said.

“Obviously, we had guys who are right their bodies, some guys playing cricket from the county. Everyone is really excited to be here now and is looking forward to tomorrow.

“We know that it will be difficult, it’s still against India. The five test games are very demanding on the body, so we focus on these five games.”