Ben Stokes – Colossus English who is four players in a

It was when Ben Stokes underwent his second serious injury to the hamstrings of the year in New Zealand last winter that he again demonstrated his extraordinary fighting qualities in adversity.

“Something else to overcome? Keep then,” said Stokes on X after decomposing during the bowling alley during the third test in Hamilton.

“I have so much more left in the tank and much more blood, sweat and tears to cross for my team and this shirt,” he continued. “There is a reason why I have a phoenix permanently on my body.”

How this Phoenix increased the ashes of another reverse this summer, and how the chances of England to win ashes this winter are improved if their captain is in good shape to play a complete role in Australia.

On Saturday, Old Trafford of Manchester again recovered in this colossus of a cricket player on the fourth day of the fourth test against India when Stokes added his first century in two years to his first transport of five counters in eight years (before India retained the burden of England towards a convincing victory and as standard of series).

It is a measure of his success that only three English had already made double a century and five gates in the same test – Tony Greig, Ian Botham (five times) and, last year, Gus Atkinson against Sri Lanka at Lord’s.

Stokes is also only the fifth captain of any team to carry out the benchmark and the first for 42 years, after Denis Atkinson des Antilles in 1955, Garfield Sobers des Antilles in 1966, Mushtaq Mohammad, Pakistan in 1977 and Imran Khan, also from Pakistan, in 1983.

These figures, and the scarcity of such dominant performance with battles and balls, have shown how one of the real big ones is still, at 34 years old, in England.

Stokes withdrew from the attack on Saturday when India started its second round 311 behind the huge score of 669 of England because he still felt the pinch that forced him to retire temporarily, supposedly with Cramp, while beating on the third day.

And England was a much less powerful force with the ball without captain who renamed as a quick bowling player this summer, India took the match in a last day and staying alive in the series by going to 174 for two after losing these two counters in the first.

England can only hope and pray that this is not serious again, because Stokes was their best bowler throughout four tests in this series, taking 16 counters so far and Bowling 129 Overs before today with authentic rhythm and venom to almost 90 mph.

(Clive Mason / Getty images)

He is really back to his best with the ball, only seven months after having undergone the most serious knee and hamstrings who threatened to reduce his bowling involvement and damage the very important balance of the part of England.

Stokes had none of this, working tirelessly during the winter after surgery with the strength and packaging coach of England Peter Sim and Physio Ben Davies and back at the beginning of this summer in the best form of his life.

During these long days on the sidelines, Stokes looked at images of the victory of England against South Africa in the early 2020, when he bordered 23.4 overs in the second round and won the match with a burst of three counters.

This is how he wanted to play again, with his front leg entirely prepared for the delivery of the ball to give him the rhythm and the efficiency he lost, especially when he had a chronic problem of the left knee during the ashes of 2023 which finally led to even more surgery.

And this is how Stokes did bowling this summer – and on Saturday, he was back to his best with the bat, hitting three six in his 141 and becoming only the third versatile after the sober and the Jacques Kallis of South Africa to make more than 7,000 points and take more than 200 buttons in cricket.

There are really two players in one.

Or three, if you include the leadership that gave it the highest percentage of any captain in England who led the team in more than 30 tests. Call it four if you add the land that saw it safely sachet 113 catches… it is how precious stokes is.

(Gareth Copley / Getty Images)

He has experienced a large part of this adversity along the way. To be returned to the house of a tour of England Lions (Team B) in Australia in 2013 for disciplinary reasons when coach Andy Flower said to him: “You don’t want to be a player from England.” To which Stokes replied: “Yes, I do it. I’ll show you.”

There were more problems along the way before Stokes indeed shows its true value in England, especially when it was involved in a wrestling outside of a bar in 2017 and found itself in court before being recognized not guilty of assignment.

And there was a reminder of the personal adversity he suffered when he turned to the sky after reaching his hundreds of Old Trafford and made a twisted finger gesture in honor of his father Ged, who died by brain cancer, at the age of 65, five years ago.

The gesture is due to the fact that Senior Stokes once had an amputated finger so that he could continue his career as a rugby player and there is a lot of this tenacity in his son, now he was channeled so positively and in a productive way in winning tests for England.

(States Sto Forster / Getty)

England’s ability to win this fourth test, and therefore the series with a game to play – with Shubman Gill and Kl Rahul standing at everything their attack, less stokes, could launch them on Saturday – could well be summed up if Stokes can play on the last day.

And their chances of upsetting the chances and winning in Australia this winter, for the first time since 2011, could well depend on the capacity of the captain to beat and make a bowl at the height of his powers.

“We hope he will be able to play on the last day,” said Deputy Coach of England Marcus Treshicking thereafter. “He is a little stiff and painful after having had a lot of bowling in recent weeks, and he cracked a little when he beat. He had a huge workload. Of course, you have this little concern and his absence created a hole, but we will see how he is going tomorrow. The crossed fingers, everything will be fine.”

“Does something else overcome?” Then continue… ” – as Stokes said without a doubt.

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(Top Photo: Gareth Copley / Getty Images)