[VIDEOS] Ben Stokes - England’s best ever all-rounder? / England’s Test captain

[Last Monetarist]

Stokes is good for modern era but not sure of all-time. He should surely be in top 10.

Top 10 all-rounders ever

1. Gary Sobers
2. Imran Khan
3. Jacques Kallis
4. Keith Miller
5. Ian Botham
6. Kapil Dev
7. Ben Stokes
8. Chris Cairns
9. Andrew Flintoff
10. Shakib Al Hasan

So, Stokes at best is 7th and second best after Botham for England.

This list is missing Procter and Greig, who I'd have in place of Cairns and Flintoff. Also feel Shakib is criminally underrated.

 

[tyron_woodley]

Flintoff lol? you serious. He had like maybe 3 good series at best.

 

[Robert]

Stokes’ average climbs to 38.58.

He averages 77 with the bat this year so far, but a less impressive 40 with the ball.

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes’ average climbs to 38.58.

He averages 77 with the bat this year so far, but a less impressive 40 with the ball.

Nope Robby!

You looking wrong stats there. That New Zealand series was last year.

 

[James]

Stokes seems to be quite injury-prone as a bowler nowadays, and he is being used for partnership-breaking bursts as opposed to strike bowling (which was Flintoff’s role).

Stokes has the capability to average >45 with the bat in Test cricket, so even if he is an occasional 4th seamer and averages 35 with the ball, with that batting average he is still going to be worth his weight in gold.

And then there is the fielding and the catching!

 

[Saj]

A genuine all-rounder. A match-winner. Not a bits and pieces cricketer.

This guy is brilliant and the type of cricketer Pakistan has lacked for many years.

 

[Abdullah719]

Ben Stokes 'at peak of his powers' and England must 'savour his greatness', says Joe Root

Joe Root says talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes is "at the peak of his powers" and England must "savour his greatness" after his man-of-the-match display in the win over West Indies at Emirates Old Trafford.

Stokes scored 176 from 356 balls in England's first innings and then blasted an unbeaten 78 from 57 deliveries in their second to set up a declaration an hour into day five, before the hosts rolled the Windies for 198.

"Everyone understands that we are watching a player at the peak of his powers at the peak of world cricket, who is delivering time and time again, " Root said of Stokes, who captained England in the first Test while Root attended the birth of his second child.

"We have to savour that, appreciate that and we have to understand that we are - without wanting to pump his tyres too much - in the presence of greatness.

"He's a genuine all-rounder player, something you don't see much in world cricket. He's someone you can genuinely turn to any time and he'll change you a game.

"He's Mr Incredible! He probably looks a bit the like the cartoon character, too! He's a similar shape, but probably a bit skinnier than him now.

"Ben can come in and play through a range of gears and situations - it shows how valuable he is to our team.

"He doesn't surprise me. You watch how he goes about his business in practice whether it be fitness or anything, he leads the way in many respects.

"The sky is the limit for him. He seems to want to keep getting better and better and we're seeing those results out on the field.

"It's great for a lot of the young guys to see that - you've got to put the hard yards in and he certainly does that. We're starting to see that feed into the rest of the team, which is a great place to be."

https://www.skysports.com/cricket/n...gland-must-savour-his-greatness-says-joe-root

 

[Robert]

Nope Robby!

You looking wrong stats there. That New Zealand series was last year.

Oh yes, 17 wickets in five tests at 20 each. Yet to bowl at a good batting line this year, of course.

 

[tyron_woodley]

top 5....way to go stokes. what a champion he us. respect. The game is never over until this man is out.

 

[Slog]

This list is missing Procter and Greig, who I'd have in place of Cairns and Flintoff. Also feel Shakib is criminally underrated.

Hadlee?

 

[Last Monetarist]

Hadlee?

He would also make that list ahead of Flintoff and Cairns for sure. But he shouldn't be in the top ten for me in place of either Stokes, Greig, Procter, or Shakib, as the top six are beyond dispute.

 

[Robert]

Hadlee?

You would always want him because he was so destructive with the ball - like Lillee he took five wickets per test which is extraordinary - but he only scored two test centuries. Good at hitting counterattacking fifties though,

 

[MenInG]

England skipper Joe Root said he isn't surprised by Ben Stokes' match-winning contribution in the second Test against West Indies at Old Trafford on Monday.

The all-rounder led the way with a match aggregate of 254 runs and three wickets, two on the final day, to earn England a 113-run win in Manchester.

Root, who returned as regular skipper after missing the first Test, said, "Stokes just keeps getting better and better. He went through a range of gears and played the situation. He doesn't surprise me, if you watch how he goes about his business in training and practice, he leads the way. He just wants to get better and better and it is great for a lot of young guys coming in to see that."

Man of the match Stokes denied feeling being overused with the ball. He said, "Absolutely not. I do everything the team asks of me and we have found the method of playing dry cricket with the field. Not only does it give us a wicket, it also keeps the run rate in check because the batsmen can't get away. In the first innings it just came about. We didn't feel there was any lateral movement off the pitch or anything. Bouncing six balls into the wicket is a plan we use in Tests.

"A lot of credit has to go to the spell the bowlers bowled yesterday - [Stuart] Broad, [Chris] Woakes, [Sam] Curran and [Dom] Bess. There are discussions, but Joe has the final call on when I bowl."

Root was pleased with his team's first innings batting after being inserted by Jason Holder. "It was a brilliant week of cricket. From the outset making 400 for the third time in two weeks was great. From that point on in this game, we just drove the game on. At the start of the day all three results were possible and it was great to finish on top," he said.

Stokes had an injury scare late in the day with England one wicket away from the win. "I am fine," said the 29-year-old. "The body started to get a bit stiff. I said to Broady, he asked me to stop. Didn't want to take that risk."

Root also reserved raise for opener Dominic Sibley, who scored a patient hundred in the first innings to set the tone for England. "I mean that's exactly what we want from him - to go out there and make that big contribution."

Broad, who expressed his displeasure at being dropped in the first Test, returned to the side with six wickets. Root said, "You expect that from Stuart. When he says something you expect him to back it up. He put up a great performance in the first innings and today as well. We always feel that he has a long career ahead."

The final Test will also be played at Old Trafford from July 24.

https://sportstar.thehindu.com/cric...-test-manchester-joe-root/article32142767.ece

 

[Markhor]

Stokes is one of the best in the world at being able to shift gears in an innings.

It's incredible how quickly he can go from stonewall defence to all out attack depending on the match situation.

 

[The Viper]

He has been in supreme touch since the start of 2019.

In 16 Tests he has:

1433 runs, averaging 55 with four 100s and six 50s.

39 wickets, averaging 28.

 

[Robert]

He has been in supreme touch since the start of 2019.

In 16 Tests he has:

1433 runs, averaging 55 with four 100s and six 50s.

39 wickets, averaging 28.

The big shock of the court case and losing a year has focused him.

 

[James]

He has been in supreme touch since the start of 2019.

In 16 Tests he has:

1433 runs, averaging 55 with four 100s and six 50s.

39 wickets, averaging 28.

That’s immense!

 

[HappyWarsFan]

So some home bashing against a weak Windies and everyone is singing his praises. Lmao. If this was a Pakistani or Indian no one would care.

 

[Markhor]

So some home bashing against a weak Windies and everyone is singing his praises. Lmao. If this was a Pakistani or Indian no one would care.

Yes because we have our own Ben Stokes in Faheem "I hit the Bangladeshis around with a 30m boundary once" Ashraf.

 

[tyron_woodley]

So some home bashing against a weak Windies and everyone is singing his praises. Lmao. If this was a Pakistani or Indian no one would care.

he scored vs australia at home and away. he scored vs india away.
he scored vs all top teams he is on the way to being GOAT.

 

[James]

So some home bashing against a weak Windies and everyone is singing his praises. Lmao. If this was a Pakistani or Indian no one would care.

This is a poor post, really. Stokes is being praised for his performance levels over the last 18 months, not just because he had a good match.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

This is a poor post, really. Stokes is being praised for his performance levels over the last 18 months, not just because he had a good match.

Yes. I agree he's had a great purple patch in the last 18 months, like the Headingley innings, but it's just annoying to me that everyone is hyping his performance for this game which is against WI at home.

 

[Saj]

He has a thigh injury.

Let's see if he plays in the deciding match.

 

[shamaan]

He has a thigh injury.

Let's see if he plays in the deciding match.

He will play but as a batesman

 

[King_Kohli]

Gautam Gambhir said that Ben Stokes is in his own league and you cannot compare him to anyone in India at the moment. There's no one close to him at the moment in world cricket.

 

[tyron_woodley]

stokes is the best ever of post 2000 era.

 

[Extra_Cover]

 

[tyron_woodley]

Goat.

 

[MenInG]

So should Stokes have played in this game? or is he good enough as a batsman to keep a place in England side?

 

[Bhaijaan]

The way he is going right now, if he continies this for another 4-5 years, people are going to start comparing him to Kapil Dev eventually. He has the potential. Wishing him well.

 

[Bhaijaan]

So should Stokes have played in this game? or is he good enough as a batsman to keep a place in England side?

Personally speaking, Ben Stokes should only be utilised in his fill capacity in marque test series only.

 

[shamaan]

So should Stokes have played in this game? or is he good enough as a batsman to keep a place in England side?

Defo is good enough just as Bateman

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes is a pure genius of the game. He walks into few teams purely on his fielding skills.

Since 1990, the game of cricket has only seen four truly genius cricketers.

 

[MenInG]

He an bowl if needed so lets see how this goes but he should be a handful as a batsman alone.

 

[therealAB]

Stokes is a pure genius of the game. He walks into few teams purely on his fielding skills.

Since 1990, the game of cricket has only seen four truly genius cricketers.

Now I am interested. Who are they?
I am guessing:
Warne
Lara
Stokes
Gilchrist

I am assuming you didn’t pick Wasim/ Sachin as they were born before 1990

 

[therealAB]

The way he is going right now, if he continies this for another 4-5 years, people are going to start comparing him to Kapil Dev eventually. He has the potential. Wishing him well.

He is already being compared to Kapil Dev

Soon, people will start to compare him with Sobers and Imran

 

[tyron_woodley]

one of the best of all time in all formats proper All time legend/great. Very soon he will be above kapil and botham.

 

[Ab Fan]

Now I am interested. Who are they?
I am guessing:
Warne
Lara
Stokes
Gilchrist

I am assuming you didn’t pick Wasim/ Sachin as they were born before 1990

Warne, Lara, ABDV, Stokes.

Count in Gilly, a genius in his own right.

 

[Robert]

The way he is going right now, if he continies this for another 4-5 years, people are going to start comparing him to Kapil Dev eventually. He has the potential. Wishing him well.

He will never run through sides consistently as Kapil did. But he’s a better batter and catcher.

 

[Robert]

So should Stokes have played in this game? or is he good enough as a batsman to keep a place in England side?

Yes, he averages fifty since returning from his ban.

 

[therealAB]

Warne, Lara, ABDV, Stokes.

Count in Gilly, a genius in his own right.

How did I forget ABdV?
Probably a top 5 then. Have something that differentiates them from regular ATG's like Smith, Kohli, Ponting, Donald etc
Not necessarily better but more 'genius'

 

[Bhaijaan]

He will never run through sides consistently as Kapil did. But he’s a better batter and catcher.

Kudos to England.

You have three genuine AR greats in Botham, Flintoff and Stokes, neither of whom could ever be questioned to be a pseudo all rounder because they were able to turn matches around at their peak with both skills simultaneously..


I agree with you thag as a pure batsman, Stokes is a level above Kapil in terms of reliability and probably even striking ability?

 

[happydavy]

Always been a big fan of Stokes, a pure match winner. He won England the world cup and then an amazing test match against Australia within 2-3 months. It usually takes players a lifetime to have 2 such knocks. He's one of the very few players I have seen, who came fully prepared for greatness right from the time they started playing international cricket. There wasn't much improvement needed to become a player of susbtance for Stokes when he debuted.

 

[Ab Fan]

How did I forget ABdV?
Probably a top 5 then. Have something that differentiates them from regular ATG's like Smith, Kohli, Ponting, Donald etc
Not necessarily better but more 'genius'

Absolutely. AB was a special cricketer and while there are a lot of better players than him, there are just not many possessing the genius which he had.

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes has become an icon of the game now. Pakistan have got a good start to their campaign but even they know, if they have to win this series, they will need to go past the Stokes hurdle.

Australians reached close last year but just couldn't go past.

 

[Firebat]

Pakistan win the first battle vs Stokes - Abbas has sent him back for a duck with an absolute beauty.

 

[Firebat]

Not much Stokes can do to this beauty:

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/mysqb9" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>

 

[shamaan]

Pakistan win the first battle vs Stokes - Abbas has sent him back for a duck with an absolute beauty.

Pope should come in ahead of stokes unless they are in total control then stokes can come up the order

 

[tyron_woodley]

Not much Stokes can do to this beauty:

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/mysqb9" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>

dies abbas have to squak like a crow lol. Great ball.

 

[Firebat]

Hasn't bowled, scored a duck and now dropped Abid at slip. Not a great all-round performance from England's greatest allrounder so far.

 

[MenInG]

MIKEY HOLDING can't quite believe the errors in the field he has seen from Stokes...

"I don't think you can blame where the slips are standing. You're just not accustom to seeing Stokes drop catches.

"Once he gets his hands to the ball, you expect it to be a wicket. He dropped a couple against the West Indies, and one now, so I have no idea what might be going through his head, but normally that is out.

"I don't see Stokes as someone that is standing there and thinking 'hopefully I won't get another catch my way'. Something is wrong."

 

[James]

2 great wickets at the end that have made a big difference to the match situation.

 

[Ab Fan]

What a beast!

An ultimate match winner, a truly genuine all-rounder.

 

[Bhaijaan]

Greatest cricketer in the world in last 2 years and talent wise the nearest cricketer ever to Kapil Dev.

 

[Plumb]

Not only for england, currently world no1. Half stokes is better than many so called “all rounders”

 

[Robert]

MIKEY HOLDING can't quite believe the errors in the field he has seen from Stokes...

"I don't think you can blame where the slips are standing. You're just not accustom to seeing Stokes drop catches.

"Once he gets his hands to the ball, you expect it to be a wicket. He dropped a couple against the West Indies, and one now, so I have no idea what might be going through his head, but normally that is out.

"I don't see Stokes as someone that is standing there and thinking 'hopefully I won't get another catch my way'. Something is wrong."

Standing too close maybe? The slips take their cue from the keeper and Buttler is not the best of his type.

 

[therealAB]

Greatest cricketer in the world in last 2 years and talent wise the nearest cricketer ever to Kapil Dev.

Haha. Sobers was the most talented by a country mile
Aggressive, stylish, prolific, dominant batsman
Could bowl both pace and chinaman reasonably well
ATG fielder in all positions

 

[therealAB]

What a beast!

An ultimate match winner, a truly genuine all-rounder.

Showed that he steps up and always contributes to a match

 

[tyron_woodley]

Haha. Sobers was the most talented by a country mile
Aggressive, stylish, prolific, dominant batsman
Could bowl both pace and chinaman reasonably well
ATG fielder in all positions

modern era Great - stokes.

ATG -sobers because he dominated in 2 different era's.

 

[therealAB]

modern era Great - stokes.

ATG -sobers because he dominated in 2 different era's.

Agreed.

My point is that as a pure talent, Stokes is much more similar to Sobers than to Dev due to the top class fielding

 

[The Viper]

41 (35) opening the batting for RR. Pretty slow innings for a player of his caliber

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes should have batted at 5 and then could have guided off the chase.

 

[Hasan123]

Stokes should have batted at 5 and then could have guided off the chase.

He is opening to help get batting time and also because he doesn't have a good record when starting against spin in the IPL.

 

[Firebat]

Fantastic 107* (60) from Stokes for Rajasthan today to help them chase down 195 with 10 balls remaining.

 

[Abdullah719]

What a shot.

<iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/bm14d0" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[MenInG]

Been a tough recent period for Stokes but he is back doing what he does best. Looks good for a hundred in Chennai

 

[James]

Aside from the latter part of his two most famous innings — first in the World Cup Final and then second at Headingley against Australia — I don’t think I have ever really seen him move up from third or fourth gear. Seems to be coasting out there in this mode. Frightening talent.

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

An all conditions batsman and a better bowler than Kallis.
Atg allrounder

 

[marlonbrowndo]

Unbelievable cricketer in all formats (dont care about t20 stats). So clutch

 

[Firebat]

Game changer in all formats. Brilliant player

 

[Last Monetarist]

Unbelievable cricketer in all formats (dont care about t20 stats). So clutch

Unfortunately, he didn't perform in the test series when England needed him desperately.

 

[Mahee]

great batsman when dew is around

 

[Last Monetarist]

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes is an England great but his performance in subcontinent still leaves a lot left for desire. If he had hit a hundred or played a match winning knock in India, I would have put him a clear ahead of Flintoff and Tony Greig.

But right now, I will put him in same tier as those two.

 

[Robert]

Stokes is an England great but his performance in subcontinent still leaves a lot left for desire. If he had hit a hundred or played a match winning knock in India, I would have put him a clear ahead of Flintoff and Tony Greig.

But right now, I will put him in same tier as those two.

Stokes hit a hundred in his first test innings in India, at Rajkot in 2016.

His 82 in the first test at Chennai was critical in support of Root who would not have got to 218 without Stokes helping.

 

[Ab Fan]

Stokes hit a hundred in his first test innings in India, at Rajkot in 2016.

His 82 in the first test at Chennai was critical in support of Root who would not have got to 218 without Stokes helping.

No doubt, he has played a couple of good knocks in India but you would still feel that in subcontinent conditions, he still leaves a lot left for desire. A player of his pedigree should do better than that. Both the knocks were on flatties.

 

[Robert]

No doubt, he has played a couple of good knocks in India but you would still feel that in subcontinent conditions, he still leaves a lot left for desire. A player of his pedigree should do better than that. Both the knocks were on flatties.

Fair.

Whereas Tawny Grigg averaged 51 with the bat and 27 with the ball in India (bowling off-breaks I suppose)?

 

[King_Kohli]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OnThisDay?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OnThisDay</a> in 2016, Carlos Brathwaite hit four consecutive sixes off Ben Stokes…<br><br>…and the rest was history &#55356;&#57286; <a href="https://t.co/xGVsLvPS9P">pic.twitter.com/xGVsLvPS9P</a></p>— ICC (@ICC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1378308851070566400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 3, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[King_Kohli]

And the rest is history after that 2016 humiliation.

Ben Stokes became the World's best all rounder
Ben Stokes won the Ashes
Ben Stokes won the ODI World Cup

 

[Hasan123]

And the rest is history after that 2016 humiliation.

Ben Stokes became the World's best all rounder
Ben Stokes won the Ashes
Ben Stokes won the ODI World Cup

England lost the Ashes series in 2017,Ben Stokes did not play anyway. In 2019, they drew the series but Australia retained The Ashes. So Ben Stokes did not win The Ashes after 2016.