Summoning Ben Stokes did not result in a miracle for England, but he bowed out of the format with his head held high, writes Abhishek Mukherjee.
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This was the ground where Ben Stokes sat on his haunches in despair as Daren Sammy’s men celebrated around the Eden Gardens seven and a half years ago.
But like all great careers, there was a resurrection. For Stokes, it happened in four parts.
Stokes had not played World Cup cricket until the 2019 edition of the tournament. On his competition debut, he hit a 79-ball 89, claimed 2-12, and held that catch (and another). He never stopped. In the final, he made 84 not out and bossed Trent Boult in the Super Over to help England win their first ever World Cup.
Later that summer at Headingley, his unbeaten 135 couldn’t quite regain the Ashes, but it did help England pull off a near-miracle.
Three years later, Stokes, newly appointed Test captain, infused aggression into the way England played the format to convert a barren streak into sustained success.
Later that year, England recalled him to their T20I side after a year and a half: he responded by shepherding England to a famous win in the T20 World Cup final with an unbeaten half-century.
You can see why he is associated with miracles. He does things no one else can. It is not about runs or wickets – he has them too – but about being there, at the thick of things, in some of England’s most famous cricketing moments of all time.
You can also see why England called him up ahead of the World Cup in India. They knew he had not played ODI cricket in 14 months. They knew he would not bowl. None of that mattered.
Stokes validated the recall by blasting 182 in 124 balls against New Zealand at The Oval, the highest score for England in the format. It was happening again, of course.
Unfortunately, while legends have a habit of rising to occasions, their bodies seldom understand these needs. Stokes missed the first three matches with a hip niggle. England lost two of these, including one to Afghanistan.
Stokes’s comeback in the 2023 World Cup did not begin well, for the match was done and dusted by the time he arrived at the crease against South Africa, and he made two runs before Kagiso Rabada claimed him.
Against Sri Lanka, England lost again – but this time Stokes top-scored with 43. He lost patience and his wicket after Mohammed Shami unleashed an over from hell. By now, the obituaries of his ODI career were being written.
Ahead of England’s next match – against Australia, no less – he informed the media that he would undergo surgery on that perennially problematic left knee, but would stay put until England’s abysmal campaign was over.
Now it began. England lost the match, which is why it will not be remembered that Stokes top-scored again, this time with 64. When England regained their mojo, against the Netherlands, his 84-ball 108 was yet again the highest score.
It was now time to sign off, not just from the World Cup but from the format – well, almost certainly. The applause was lukewarm when he walked out, and he set off with a slash off a 146 mph ball from Haris Rauf for four. On came Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Stokes walked down the pitch and sent the ball disappearing.
The ground, nearly half full, was applauding by now. They exploded when Stokes went after Shaheen in the 27th over, picking up three fours. As the spinners came on, so came the sweeps, both conventional and reverse, for fours (is he not going to have a knee surgery?).
The fifty took him 53 balls. The most astonishing shot – a violent reverse-swept six – followed soon afterwards, evoking memories of the Headingley epic.
By the time Shaheen had his revenge, Stokes had raced to 84 – a number we have already mentioned in this piece. The ground that had once celebrated his agony now stood for him, for they had witnessed an innings they could talk about even if they do not remember the match.
England had been knocked out long before that, but that was not because of Stokes. He’s been England’s best bat in four of his six outings, his 50.67 was the best average, and only Dawid Malan had more runs. Apart from those two, no one in the side averaged even 31.
Unlike in 2019, his teammates – most of them, at least – had let him down. Even a Ben Stokes cannot pull off a miracle all on his own. Well, not every time.
