Watch: In the second innings of the Ranchi Test match, a shooter from Kuldeep Yadav ended Ben Stokes’ painstaking 13-ball stay at the crease.
Subscribe to the Wisden Cricket YouTube channel for post-match analysis, player interviews, and much more.
England made 353 after winning the toss in the fourth Test of the five-match series, at Ranchi. Reduced to 171-7 in the second evening, India recovered to 307 to keep the first-innings deficit to 46 runs.
England captain Ben Stokes walked out at 110-4 in the second innings, after Kuldeep Yadav snared Zak Crawley with the first ball of an over. He played four of the five remaining balls confidently, including a cut for two. He tried to defend the last ball on the front foot as well, but it beat the outside edge.
Jonny Bairstow gave Stokes strike for four balls in the next over, against Ravindra Jadeja. Stokes pushed the first of these, a full-toss, for two. The next ball hit him on the pad, but Rod Tucker ruled not out, and replays revealed an umpire’s call. Stokes played out the remaining two balls, one of which hit his pad first and he would have out, but India did not review.
He then defended the only ball he faced across the next two overs. When Kuldeep tossed up the first ball of the next over on a length, Stokes attempted a slog against the turn. The ball did not bounce: it beat Stokes, who was fortunate to be not bowled.
Stokes blocked the next ball. Kuldeep flighted again, and Stokes remained rooted to the crease – a dangerous approach, given the low bounce of the pitch. The ball kept low and hit him on the shin – he would almost certainly have been leg-before – before rolling on to hit the stumps.
