Ben Stokes has heaped praise on Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja after their stunning unbeaten partnership of 203 runs helped India secure a draw in the fourth Test at Manchester. Sundar scored an unbeaten 101, while Jadeja remained not out on 103, steering India out of a precarious position and saving the match on the final day.
Despite their heroics, it was the England skipper who was named Player of the Match, thanks to his all-round brilliance—scoring 141 with the bat and claiming six wickets, including a first-innings five-wicket haul.
During the post-match presentation, Stokes acknowledged the Indian duo’s remarkable effort.
“Heap load of credit for the way Washington and Jadeja played, got to give them a lot of credit. To do what they did from that position.”
Reflecting on his own performance, he added: “When you have a good game as an allrounder, you assess it by the result at the end of the game… I’d give this all back to get the result that we wanted.”
India’s escape was a result of a phenomenal batting effort overall. Along with Sundar and Jadeja’s unbeaten tons, captain Shubman Gill scored a century, and KL Rahul contributed a crucial 90.
“It’s been a back and forth series so far, throwing punches at each other, great credit to the way India have kept fighting,” Stokes further said.
The England captain also admitted the toll that five weeks of intense cricket is beginning to take on his body.
“[On his shoulder] It’s just the workload thing, got through a fair amount of overs, it starts creeping up on you. As I say to the bowlers, pain is only an emotion …”
When asked about the moment late on Day 5 when England appeared ready to settle for a draw, but India continued playing with both batters nearing centuries, Stokes said: “I wasn’t going to risk any of my bowlers… Dawsey had bowled a lot of overs and his body was tiring … I wasn’t going to risk any of my front line bowlers.”
With England leading the series 2-1 and one Test remaining at the Oval, Stokes stressed the need to use the coming days wisely.
“We’ll have to use these next few days wisely, we’re lucky to have a battery of bowlers that we can call on at any time,” he concluded.
For latest sports updates: Follow RevSportz