Image Credit- AP
Can we stop using the phrase: “That’s a bad
shot”?
That was the plea Ben Stokes made to “everyone
watching cricket” in the Players’ Tribune, eight days before this summer’s
Ashes. “The shot choice is only ever bad when it’s out,” he said.
“You might try the same exact shot at another ball, catch it sweetly and
it sails over the rope for a four or six, and then no one will say
anything.”
anxiety of exiting the game in the “wrong”
way is the most crippling anxiety a player may have. Furthermore, dismissals
are studied separately even though they are typically the result of everything
that came before them.
Prior to Stokes taking the field on Sunday night in
Lucknow, England was 30 for 2 and chasing 230 after Jasprit Bumrah had taken
two wickets in as many deliveries. For a short while, their brilliant start
made the crowd seem lifeless, but the wickets energised all 46,000 of them, of
which some 45,900 appeared to be dressed in India’s royal blue.
Once during this World Cup, a slow pitch was utilised,
and it was difficult for hitters on both teams to hit. As with Rohit Sharma’s
innings-long batting performance in the first innings, England’s sole hope for
victory was to hope that the dew would make things difficult for India in the
latter stages of the match.
Two of the top order, Joe Root and Dawid Malan, had
previously fallen prey to Bumrah’s genius. Bowlers from the South End presented
England with their best chance to achieve run scoring and make the most of the
five overs left before the field spread. Since Mohammed Siraj was having ankle
problems, Mohammed Shami became Stokes’ target.
Shami delivered a decent length ball to Stokes, who
was left unopposed. After scoring nearly the same as his second, Stokes stormed
down the pitch, creating space for himself to attempt a late boundary down the
off side. The ball swerved off the seam, going past the outside edge of Stokes’
glove and into KL Rahul’s. Shami covered his head with his fists.
Stokes shaped to eject Shami via point as he drew his
length back just a little. He attempted to play but missed, causing Shami to
wince as he followed through. As Stokes shaped to work leg-side, the last ball
of Shami’s opening over—Bairstow having flicked the first for two and then
guided the second for a single—skidded into his pad. No runs, four balls.
After 4.4 overs, England was 30 for 0, but after seven
overs, they were 33 for 2. There was so much dew on the outfield that a single
border might stop the ball from swinging. However, Shami remained unyielding,
not shifting from that respectable distance.
Shami’s second over began with a ball that barely
moved, but it shaped away from around the wicket just enough to get past
Stokes’ defence. Stokes then thought it was time to take charge and skipped
down to the second, hurling his bat at another one that was a fair length. As
he manoeuvred through additional cover, an inadvertent flash caught him in
midair.
Stokes did not make touch with the fourth ball of
Shami’s over, but he did make contact with the third, striking to cover from a
somewhat shorter length. As another flawless, well-lengthened ball angled in,
seamed away, and beat Stokes on the outside edge, Shami placed his hands on his
head. Shami’s only longer ball to Stokes, aimed towards the stumps, came in the
fifth over. He gradually worked it up to mid-on.
No runs, nine balls, and nine dots. There are five
balls of a decent length, three somewhat shorter, and one slightly larger.
Stokes’ bat made contact with three balls, two charges, and one leave.
In an attempt to create space so that he could push
the ball through the off side for a four, Stokes positioned his front foot
outside the leg stump. The ball raced through the ground, snuck in off the
seam, and clattered into his leg stumps and middle.
With a roar that could be heard throughout an enormous
stadium, Shami struck the air. Stokes hobbled away, having scored 48 runs in
three matches, made three catches, and not bowled a ball throughout England’s
World Cup since he had reversed his ODI retirement. Pipes can explode and
diamonds can form under pressure. A poor throw? Maybe Stokes should have the
last say on that.