Follow UsBen Stokes is the most important member of the England Test side, not only because of the buoyant captaincy he provides but also due to the balance he brings to the table with his all-round abilities. Him not bowling due to a knee problem has forced England to play an extra bowler and, sometimes, run Joe Root into the ground with over-usage.
However, in good news for English cricket fans, the Durham man has been bowling regularly in the nets and, in all likelihood, may bowl in the Ranchi Test as England plan to rest both James Anderson and Mark Wood to manage their workload. In that case, it is certain that Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir will make the cut.
"I'm not saying yes, I'm not saying no. Me being me, I'm always very optimistic about most things. That will be a more detailed chat with the medical team about what workload I have done to pass me off as not being a massive risk,” Stokes said.
"I managed to bowl at 100% on one of the warm-up days here which made me feel pretty good. I felt like I could have bowled in the game but that would have been stupid."
Brendon McCullum added that Stokes' bowling in the Test would depend on many factors, including his full confidence to bowl his overs. "Well, it's good that he's actually getting into a state where he thinks he might bowl. But Ben is clever; he's really clever as well. He won't bowl unless he thinks he's legitimately able to bowl. The problem would be if he starts getting into a spell and then he can't get out of the spell. So we'll see what unfolds,” McCullum said.
"If he does get that bit between his teeth, then let's see where the danger lies there and try and pull him away from it. But it's a good sign."