Ben Stokes’ record-shattering innings in Wednesday’s ODI against New Zealand has been described by his teammate Chris Woakes as further evidence that he is “a superhuman who can do incredible things”.
Woakes said the 32-year-old was powered to his score of 182, the highest by an Englishman in the format, by the relief of playing without the burden of captaincy, and by the welcome he has received from England’s band of brothers, a squad largely unchanged from the one that won the World Cup with Stokes at its heart in 2019.
“It’s great for the group and obviously brilliant for Ben,” Woakes said of Stokes’s form. “We obviously see Ben as this superhuman who can do incredible things. We know he can. He’s an unbelievable cricketer but coming back into the team having retired, it will do his confidence the world of good. We always have performance anxieties, so it’s great for his confidence and great for the team’s confidence and belief that we can post huge scores.
“It was an incredible knock. I think coming back into the team is probably a refreshing feeling for him, without the captaincy on his shoulders. To run the England Test team is a tough job. He’s probably seen this as a breath of fresh air, to play his natural game and be his natural person. This group of players who have been around this team for a long time always feel comfortable when we come back together. For Ben, to come after the Ashes, it’s like a breath of fresh air for him.”
England go into the final game at Lord’s on Friday, which will also be the last outing for the majority of the World Cup squad before they travel to India at the end of this month, with a 2-1 lead in the series. The only negative so far is the fact two potentially key players have been unable to take part, with Mark Wood still recovering from the rigours of the Ashes and Jason Roy suffering a series of back spasms.
Fourth ODI, 12.30pm, Friday 15 September, Lord's
England Roy, Bairstow, Root, Brook, Buttler, Livingstone, Moeen, Curran, Woakes, Rashid, Carse.
New Zealand Conway, Young, Nicholls, Mitchell, Latham, Phillips, Ravindra, Southee, Henry, Ferguson, Boult.
“He was sore at the end of the Ashes,” Woakes said of Wood. “I think he had a sore heel and he’s coming back from that. He’s a big asset for us going into the World Cup, you don’t want to risk him too soon. Bruised heels, you think it’s going to be a week or two and in the end they end up being quite long injuries that can always reoccur, so it’s just trying to be careful with him.
“He’s going to be important for us in India. A player with Mark’s experience can go straight in, he’s not the sort of guy who needs a load of game time. I don’t think it’s too much of a worry if he doesn’t play in this series.”
Roy was scheduled to play on Wednesday, but a back spasm on the morning of the game ruled him out and raised concerns about his fitness. “He was close to playing, but when he got to the Oval and started moving around he had another twinge,” Woakes said.
“This close to a World Cup it’s a bit of a risk to throw him into a game when you’re unsure how he’s going to go. I’m sure he’s desperate to get out there and I’m sure he’s frustrated. Pre-World Cup you want to get a bit of form behind you and play as many games as possible but he’s a resilient character, the lads have got around him and I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
New Zealand will again be without Mitchell Santner, who jarred his knee while fielding during Sunday’s second game, but have been encouraged by scans on the joint and do not consider him a doubt for the World Cup.
