England Captain Ben Stokes Speaks of Squandered Opportunities and Bowling Woes After Edgbaston Loss

In the wake of England's gritty defeat at Edgbaston to India, skipper Ben Stokes candidly stated that a series of missed opportunities and woes with the ball did a lot to alter the course of the game. Even with a promising start on day one when England had India at 211 for 5 after Tea, the visitors fought back well and scored an enormous first-innings aggregate of 587. This turnabout was spearheaded by a breathtaking double-century by Shubman Gill who ruled the roost with scores of 269 and 161 in the game. Stokes reflected on those turning points with regret that England had the game in their hands but simply failed to capitalize when it counted most.

He said that having India five down for a little over 200 runs on the board was the ideal setup for England to bowl them out cheaply but instead India recovered and made it very difficult for England to come back. Stokes pointed out how after India achieved that massive total the pressure came on and England soon found themselves reeling at 80 for 5 in their own first innings. From there on it became an uphill battle for the hosts to gain a foothold in the game.

Stokes conceded that bowling remains a huge area of concern for England in this series. Even though they won the first Test at Headingley the Indian batters had strong starts in both innings there too before collapsing late. At Edgbaston however there was no collapse from India. England’s bowlers ended up conceding over 1000 runs across both innings while managing to take only 16 wickets. Stokes pointed out that winning a Test match becomes nearly impossible if your team can't take 20 wickets and acknowledged how well the Indian team batted throughout the game.

He gave credit to Indian batters for showing great skill and determination. He also added that the conditions were very favorable for batters once they got used to them and England witnessed two of their own, Harry Brook and Jamie Smith, make full use of that as well. Nevertheless, India's overall batting was just better with Shubman Gill dominating again. Stokes admired the form of Gill and declared his performance to be phenomenal particularly the manner in which he scored easily even under pressure. He said that at times when the batter is at his best even small errors from the bowlers can prove expensive and Gill made England pay each time he got a chance.

Speaking of England's bowling workload Stokes added that his fast bowlers gave their all on the field. In two Tests they bowled more than 440 overs altogether with 234 at Edgbaston and 209 at Headingley. Stokes valued their work saying they never spared themselves whenever the ball came their way and continued to assault regardless of the position. But he also acknowledged that having spent so long out on the field has obviously taken its toll on their bodies. With the next Test against Australia at Lord's just three days away he indicated that the team will have to scrutinize carefully each bowler's fitness and make some difficult decisions.

He accepted that the fast turnaround means there is hardly any time to rest and recover but asserted that the team will try its best to prepare for the next challenge. There might be rotation in the bowling attack based on how everyone feels physically and the decision will be taken only after the players have undergone recovery.

While England's bowlers were being tested India's bowling lineup proved their class once again. Akash Deep stood tall as the best player with ten wickets in the match. He assisted India in taking early wickets in both innings taking England to 84 for 5 and 83 for 5 in their two attempts at batting. Stokes noted India bowled more in tandem and were just more efficient in getting the edges and capitalizing on their chances. He added that England also beat the bat a few times but weren't able to get the same luck or same execution. India, on the other hand, bowled tighter lines forced errors and capitalized on every opportunity.

Stokes vented out his annoyance at how narrow margins can create a huge difference in cricket. He said it's hard to look at when things don't go your way despite the application being there. In his opinion, India obviously outplayed England with bat and ball and deserved to win this game. He further added that England also had a comparable all-round performance in the first Test and now it was India's turn to be the better side.

As the series enters the third Test at Lord's England will be under pressure to regain composure. Stokes and his team will have to think back about what went wrong in Birmingham and formulate new plans both in strategy and team selection. The bowling unit specifically will have to devise ways to smash through robust Indian batting orders and the skipper hinted that changes would be inevitable if the bowlers at present are not at their fullest fitness.

Ben Stokes remains hopeful and determined to inspire a comeback but acknowledges that things need to improve. He thinks the team can still turn the series around but they must capitalize on their chances and bowl better if they are to win. At least for now, concentration is still on the recovery introspection and preparation as England prepares for what is sure to be a decisive Test at Lord's.