Follow UsEngland Test captain Ben Stokes admitted he is a massive fan of Rishabh Pant. India lost the first Test by five wickets but the wicketkeeper-batter had a great game with the bat. The left-hander smashed 134 in the first innings and followed it up with a knock of 118 in the second essay.
"I absolutely love watching Rishabh play cricket. I love the way he takes it on. He's come under (pressure), he's got a bit of stick in his time, but that type of talent, when you let that type of talent be free, that's what can happen (as we saw) in the last week. Credit to him, two hundreds in the game,” said Stokes ahead of the second Test at Edgbaston, starting on July 2 (Wednesday).
"We know we're going to get our chances with the way that Rishabh plays. So, yeah, it's one of them. On a different day, it could have looked a little bit different. One of those, you know, gone straight off into hand. But, yeah, a very dangerous player. We know what he brings to the Indian team, but I really enjoy watching Rishabh play cricket.”
England chased down 371 in the first Test to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series but Stokes wants his team to start afresh. "They (India) always fight hard, come hard. (They are a) very passionate team.
“I think it's pretty clear that there's always pressure on shoulders of international sportsmen, but playing for India, especially in cricket, there's probably a bit more on any other nation. So, yeah, a very proud nation. Don't take anything for granted from last week. We're starting 0-0 again. We try and put in a performance that hopefully can take the team (forward)."
Talking about not picking Jofra Archer in the playing XI for the second Test, Stokes added: "It's been a long time since Joff's been in a Test environment. He's been playing a lot of white-ball cricket over the last couple of years. So, to have him back with us here after such a long time is, first and foremost, great for him. Great for the team. I think it's very important for Joff to be around the group this week. It's been a long time for him.
"The last time he was in the dressing room, that was under a different regime. So, I felt it was important, even if he didn't get selected this week, that he spends time around the group. Hopefully, we will see him play a part in this series going forward. So, that time spent with Joff and the other individuals in this group is very important for the rest of the series.”