‘never-say-die Nearly Paid Off’: Stokes Pays Tribute To Woakes’ Bravery In Defeat

Ben Stokes paid tribute to nan bravery of Chris Woakes arsenic a bid during which players battled astatine various stages done surgery feet and shattered fingers ended pinch a one-armed man astatine nan crease, his different limb successful a sling, enduring evident agony arsenic England fell conscionable 7 runs short of victory.

“That never-say-die, never-back-down cognition we’ve installed successful nan group astir paid off,” Stokes said. “It was ne'er going to beryllium a mobility for him to spell retired there. Obviously he was successful a batch of discomfort moreover moving betwixt nan wickets.

“But we’ve had Rishabh Pant spell retired to bat pinch a surgery foot, we’ve had Shoaib Bashir bowling, batting and fielding pinch a surgery finger, and past we had Chris spell retired location and effort and get his squad complete nan statement pinch a rather precocious dislocated shoulder.

“Before he went retired I didn’t get a chance to springiness him a pat connected nan backmost and say: ‘Go well.’ Coming disconnected it’s evident what would person been said, just: ‘Great effort, unbelievable.’ He conscionable shrugged his enarthrosis and said: ‘I wouldn’t do thing else.’”

Stokes, who was ruled retired of nan crippled pinch a enarthrosis wounded of his own, pinpointed nan infinitesimal Woakes went down connected nan opening time arsenic nan infinitesimal that decided nan lucifer – “It took, I don’t know, half a 2nd for a enarthrosis to popular out, and everything conscionable wholly changed for america there” – but nan skipper admitted that nan six catches England dropped during India’s 2nd innings had contributed.

“You could opportunity those chances that we put down did costs us, but backmost to Headingley wherever we chased down those runs, India dropped rather a fewer chances and that astir apt did lend to america winning. Maybe if we did clasp connected to those chances, things could person been a small spot different.”

Though nan crippled ended successful conclusion successful nan adversity of playing nan mostly of it a man down, Stokes felt definite that players demonstrated antecedently chartless courage. “Some guys will time off this bid having recovered retired a batch much astir themselves,” Stokes said.

“In peculiar this game, pinch Woakesy going down early on, nan work that fell connected Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Jamie Overton’s shoulders – their roles wholly changed from why they were selected, nan effect we thought they would person connected nan game. They had to excavation deep. I deliberation a mates of guys person recovered retired much astir themselves successful a very, very affirmative way.

India’s captain, Shubman Gill, said nan intimately fought bid and its fluctuating fortunes had reflected ‘how nan crippled of life works’. Photograph: Jay Patel/SPP/Shutterstock

“They took that work connected without adding unit to themselves. They did that successful a measurement of pridefulness – 1 of nan boys has gone down and we’re going to person to return connected that workload. I deliberation immoderate group would awkward distant from that and beryllium worried astir what it intends for them. They showed a batch of courage, a batch of heart. They tin beryllium very proud of nan measurement they threw themselves into that.”

After an appropriately, brutally tense conclusion connected its 25th time nan bid will beryllium remembered arsenic a classic, pinch Stokes admitting that nan last scoreline of 2-2 was “probably fair”. He said: “There’s that disappointment and vexation there, not to person sewage nan consequence that gives america nan bid win, but this bid has been awesome to beryllium a portion of.

“It’s been afloat of ups and downs, ebbs and flows, passim each game. India person been successful control, we’ve been successful control, it’s gone backmost to them and past it’s travel backmost to us. To beryllium a portion of it has been beautiful special. Obviously location is still that disappointment but for nan wider game, and we want to perpetually beryllium promoting nan game, this bid has been great.”

At nan extremity of his first bid arsenic India’s captain, to which he contributed 754 runs and 4 centuries, Shubman Gill said its – and his ain – vacillating fortunes had demonstrated “how nan crippled of life works”.

Gill said: “There are moments for illustration this wherever you consciousness nan travel is worthy it. There’ve been a batch of highs and lows and that’s benignant of expected successful sport.

“Obviously each clip you spell into bat you want to perform, you want to people a century, but that’s not really nan crippled of life works. You should beryllium capable to navigate done nan highs and lows of life and enactment balanced. I want to enactment balanced whether we’ve won nan match, mislaid nan match, I’ve done good aliases not well. That’s nan balance.

“This greeting summarised what this team’s each about. The measurement Brook and Root were going [on Sunday], not galore teams successful nan world would person fixed themselves a chance but this squad believes that whenever we person an opening we tin get done that opening. That’s what we were saying erstwhile Brook was retired – this was our opening, and you ne'er know.”