Ben Stokes Praises Skipper Joe Root For His 100 On Day 4 Of 1st Test Against India
Aug 8, 2021 at 12:40 PM
Ben Stokes, England’s all-rounder has lauded his captain Joe Root for his defiant century on Day 4 of the Nottingham Test against India.
Joe Root struck 109 off 172 balls as England scored 303 in their second innings to set the visitors a victory target of 209 runs. England is missing Ben Stokes, who pulled out of the Test series just a few days before it began, to prioritize his mental well-being.
Ben Stokes Hails Skipper Joe Root In A Tweet For Scoring Another Test Ton
Joe Root’s 64 in the first innings helped England from a major deficit and his century in the second innings had so much of a fight for his side as the skipper. He finished with 109 in 172 balls with 14 fours and played a lot of shots that were pleasing to the eyes. He has taken England to a respectable score which can be defended in the 4th innings if they bowl well.
Taking to his Twitter account on Saturday, Ben Stokes shared a video of Joe Root celebrating his 21st Test hundred and posted: “My man…..through thick and thin.” He also shared a heart emoji along with the post. Joe Root yet again bailed England out of trouble after their top three failed. Rory Burns (18), Dom Sibley (28), and Zak Crawley (6) were undone by the Indian pacers.
My man…..through thick and thin ❤️ https://t.co/h0stMxsFWu
— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) August 7, 2021
The England captain occupied the crease for 284 minutes during his innings and hit 14 boundaries. Jonny Bairstow (30) and Sam Curran (32) chipped in with decent contributions to lift the hosts past the 300-run mark. For India, Jasprit Bumrah was the standout performer with 5 for 64.
Joe Root Said England Team Was Behind Ben Stokes Who Decided To Take An Indefinite Break From Cricket To Prioritize Mental Wellbeing
Speaking ahead of the Test series against India, Joe Root threw his weight behind Ben Stokes, backing the World Cup-winning all-rounder’s decision to pull out of the series due to mental health issues. Joe Root said that the entire England team was behind Ben Stokes and wished him to be well.
At a press conference, Root had said: “From my point of view, I just want my friend to be okay. Anyone who knows Ben is aware that he always puts other people in front of himself. And I think now is the opportunity for Ben Stokes to put himself first. To take time to look after himself and get himself into a good place again.”
“Hopefully that can be sooner rather than later. I think cricket has to be the secondary thought down the line. He should take as much time as he needs. He has got my full support. I am sure he has the ECB’s full support and certainly the whole team’s. More than anything, we just want Ben to be okay.”
Ben Stokes suffered a finger injury during the first match of IPL 2021 and was immediately ruled out of the T20 league. He recently returned to lead an inexperienced England side to a 3-0 win over Pakistan in an ODI series, after the entire original squad was sent into isolation due to COVID-19 hitting the camp.
Ben Stokes broke his hand taking a catch for Rajasthan Royals in the now-suspended Indian Premier League 2021 and a repeat X-ray and CT scan revealed that he has a fracture of his left index finger. He missed the 2 Tests against New Zealand while his last Test came against India in March 2021.
Ben Stokes, who in normal circumstances would be vice-captain to Test skipper Joe Root, is a key figure for England. In 71 Tests, he has scored 4,631 runs at 37.04 as a dynamic left-handed batsman, including 10 hundred, and taken 163 wickets at 31.38.