By Trisha Ghosal in Manchester
Ben Stokes has long moved past the stage where statistics define him. Yes, he’s taken five wickets and scored a hundred in this Test. Yes, the record books will remember him. But what sets him apart is something far less tangible and far more compelling: his intent. His sheer refusal to let a game drift.
England in Trouble, Stokes in Motion
Yesterday, India were in control. Reduced to 0 for 2 early on, they clawed their way back with a dogged partnership between KL Rahul and Shubman Gill. Most captains might have taken a backseat, conserved energy, accepted the standoff. Stokes did the opposite.
He kept shifting fields. Switched lengths and lines. First came the barrage of short balls. When that didn’t work, he turned to Liam Dawson. Then came Joe Root from round the wicket, exploiting the rough. Even Ollie Pope was dragged closer than usual, knees bent at second slip, ready to catch shadows.
This wasn’t panic. It was persistence. This wasn’t tactical theatre. It was a genuine hunt. They couldn’t dismiss the Indian pair, but they kept trying to open a door, even a crack.
When England Batted, India Waited
The contrast was stark. When Stokes himself was batting earlier in the match, putting on a crucial stand with Joe Root, India didn’t try much. No new angles, no quirky field changes. They waited. England, under Stokes, didn’t. They chased.
And that’s what defines Stokes—not just as a cricketer, but as a leader. He doesn’t wait for things to happen. He forces the game into motion.
Trescothick’s Update: Hope, Not Certainty
Naturally, the question followed at the press conference: will Stokes bowl again on Day 5?
“We’re hoping so,” said England’s Test batting coach Marcus Trescothick. “He’s stiff and sore… the workload has been heavy, more than he’s ever done in a series. A managed Stokes is better than no Stokes.”
It sounded like a diplomatic dodge. A bit of realism thrown in. But here’s where context matters.
Stokes Doesn’t Do Managed
Stokes doesn’t tick boxes. He breaks them. This is the man who’s bowled through pain, batted through injury, captained through exhaustion. There’s a switch in him that flips when the game reaches a breaking point. He doesn’t just rise to the moment. He creates it.
If England even get a sniff of victory, bet on it, Stokes will have the ball in his hand. He might limp through three or four overs. But they’ll be overs of impact. Because when Stokes plays, the opponent plays against belief, not just ability.
Beast Mode: The Djokovic Parallel
There’s something of Novak Djokovic in him, the obsession with outlasting pain, outthinking circumstances. Stokes doesn’t give you a window. He gives you a war. He doesn’t retreat when bruised; he becomes more dangerous. And right now, he looks like a man who still believes there’s one final act left in this Test.
You Can’t Measure Hunger
We can crunch his stats. Celebrate his five-fors and centuries. But his real value is unquantifiable. You can’t measure what Ben Stokes brings to the field. You can only feel it. It’s in the restless adjustments, in the silent moments when he sets a trap, in the fire he carries even when England are behind.
Stokes may or may not bowl today. His body might protest, the numbers might advise caution, and the odds might lean the other way. But if there’s one man who can drag a match back from the brink, not with skill alone, but with an almost reckless belief in the impossible – it’s Ben Stokes. He doesn’t just turn sessions. He hijacks them. He doesn’t wait for miracles. He manufactures them.
And that’s why he’s unforgettable, not just a cricketer, but a phenomenon who refuses to be written out of any script.