Now is time for the real Ben Stokes to stand up
England pin hopes on their fragile talisman
The sight of Ben Stokes doing laps of Allan Border Field in conversation with the england doctor here yesterday was a reminder of the value and potential fragility of their prized asset.
england insisted there was no cause for alarm in Stokes missing training for a second day running, other than to have a stroll with Glen Rae around Brisbane’s iconic facility, ahead of a Twenty20 World Cup game against New Zealand today they cannot afford to lose.
All practices are optional these days, with england’s players trusted to know how much batting, bowling and fielding they need. But eyebrows were always going to be raised when the only player who did not initially show up ahead of a game that could define the immediate future of the england white-ball side was the talismanic figure of Stokes.
The issue, it seems, is the management of that acute injury to Stokes’s left knee that shows no signs of clearing up and has almost certainly had as much cortisone as it can take healthily.
It will not keep him out of a reunion with the nation of his birth, who he so memorably denied in the 50-over World Cup final on that incredible day at Lord’s three years ago. And no doubt Stokes will throw himself into the fray with his usual superhuman gusto.
But england need to be careful they do not risk breaking a Test captain who has given up 50-over cricket because of the demands placed on him and will today be at the centre of their attempts with bat, ball and in the field to stay in this World Cup.
The immediate priority is for Stokes to show against New Zealand that he can influence a T20 game with the bat just as dramatically as he can in both Test and 50-over cricket.
Bad weather in Australia has made the sample size a small one, but he is yet to prove he is the right man to bat in the key position of four that england have been so keen to give him, in the hope it will unlock his full potential in this format.
one man convinced Stokes will soon be proving his batting effectiveness in the shortest international format, dodgy knee and all, is Paul Collingwood, the only english captain to have held the T20 World Cup aloft. ‘There have been a couple of wickets here that have been difficult to find rhythm on,’ said england’s assistant coach. ‘But we all know what Stokesey can do.
‘he’s one innings away from doing something special and when you go into a big game like this you want your big players you know can perform under pressure. When the pressure’s on if there’s one person you’d like to go out and bat for you it’s Ben Stokes.’
how england could do with the real Ben Stokes today. Lose to a formidable New Zealand and their World Cup will be all but over and the new era they talked about at the start of this trip would look more like a false dawn. Win and they will then need to beat Chris Silverwood’s Sri Lanka in Sydney on Saturday to — net run-rate permitting — qualify for the semifinal that should be a minimum requirement.
Collingwood has been here before, not least when rain provided an early threat to england in that successful World T20 campaign in the Caribbean 12 years ago. And he is convinced there is still time for Jos Buttler’s england to move through the T20 gears.
‘You always want to build momentum throughout the tournament,’ said
Collingwood. ‘You don’t want to play your best cricket in the first couple of matches and then teeter off. It’s better the other way round. ‘I can remember in 2010 we were almost like a juggernaut once we got going and the guys understood their roles in the side. once the confidence started building we were very hard to stop. hopefully this game will be the kickstart we need.’ Nothing would be better for that confidence than another kickstart from Stokes at such a crucial time for england’s post-eoin Morgan white-ball development.