Storming Stokes denied a glory return
BEN’S BACK.. FAST AND FURIOUS
ENGLAND captain Eoin Morgan hailed the performance of Ben Stokes – despite the fact he was denied a fairy-tale return by New Zealand in a thrilling opening match of this one-day series.
The all-rounder was playing for his country for the first time in five months following the latenight incident in Bristol in September that has landed him with a charge of affray.
And Stokes swung this contest back in England’s favour with two wickets late in the Kiwis’ chase.
Bowling with pace and accuracy, Stokes finished with figures of 2-43 after his dismissals of Tom Latham and Colin De Grandhomme looked to have derailed New Zealand’s pursuit of 285.
But a brutal 27-ball cameo of 45 from tailender Mitchell Santner (top), building on a superb century from Ross Taylor, saw his team home with four balls to spare and robbed Stokes – and England – of the perfect ending.
Fresh from a 4-1 series win in Australia, it was a disappointing result for Morgan (centre) and his players, even though New Zealand’s quality is underlined by the fact this was their ninth successive ODI win.
Yet the return of Stokes, who was less impressive in scoring 12 from 22 balls with the bat, is a genuine positive for England. “I was really pleased with Ben,” said Morgan. “He’s delighted to be back, he’s told everybody that. “It’s an awesome feeling when you’ve been away and you’re back in a fun environment with lots of good friends around. “We needed something to happen, and he’s the kind of player who can make something happen.” Jos Buttler (bottom), who top-scored for England with 79 as they made 284 for eight after being put in on a sluggish Hamilton pitch, was also full of praise for Stokes. Buttler said: “Ben bowled the quickest of the lot. He hit the gloves hard. “It is fantastic to have him back. We are delighted.” Joe Root also hit his eighth half-century in 11 matches this winter after being rested for the recent Trans-Tasman T20 TriSeries.
But the absence of injury-plagued fast bowler Mark Wood with an ankle problem is a concern for England ahead of Wednesday’s second ODI in Mount Maunganui.
“He’s picked up a soreness the last couple of days and he wasn’t worth the risk today,” said Morgan.
“We’ll see how he’s assessed over the next 24 hours to see whether he will participate in the next game or we build a plan as to when he can come back.”