England will wake up on Sunday still leaning heavily on Ben Stokes, their captain, talisman and – if his body allows – chief wicket-taker. India closed the fourth evening at Old Trafford on 188 for 2, Shubman Gill and KL Rahul adding an unbroken 174 that exposed just how much England rely on Stokes once the Kookaburra grows soft.
“Very few cricketers in history with the ability of Stokes,” Sanjay Manjrekar observed on TV earlier in the day, a reminder of the freakish standards the all-rounder sets for himself and, by extension, his side.
Yet Stokes did not send down a single ball on Saturday. He was, according to assistant coach Marcus Trescothick, “a bit stiff and sore”. That phrase became the post-play refrain, Trescothick explaining England’s hope that a night on the physio’s bed will clear enough lactic acid for Stokes to let rip on a decisive fifth morning.
“He’s had quite a big workload in the last few weeks, and then batting in the first innings, he was getting quite a bit of cramp,” Trescothick said. “We are hoping that with another night’s rest and a bit more physio work overnight, he’ll be back and doing a bit tomorrow.”
Broad shoulders, heavier load
Stokes has already bowled 129 overs in this series – a personal record – after a winter spent rehabbing from hamstring surgery. At Lord’s last week he churned out 19.2 overs on the final day, then admitted he needed “four days in bed” to recover. Another 24 overs in the first two days here, five wickets and a draining century have clearly taken their toll.
On Saturday afternoon Stokes twice grabbed at his left hamstring while chasing a boundary and, briefly, a hush spread around Old Trafford. He stayed on the field, partly because England never intended him to bowl that session anyway, partly because leaving would have triggered the playing-regulations clause that bars a fielder from bowling immediately after sitting out.
“If he was off the field today, then he wouldn’t be able to come back and bowl tomorrow,” Trescothick confirmed, citing the 15-minute return-to-bowl rule that often gets forgotten outside the dressing-room.
Soft ball, soft threat
Without Stokes, the seam attack looked blunt once the lacquer wore off. James Anderson pressed away gamely, Brydon Carse found brisk pace without much movement, and Liam Dawson’s left-arm spin offered control but few alarms – though Dawson should have had Rahul when a flashing cut flew to backward point and was shelled by the same Carse.
Otherwise England spent two sessions searching for swing that never appeared. The Kookaburra, preferred for this series, traditionally stops swinging after 25-30 overs and becomes a grind for bowlers not blessed with Stokes’ knack of making something happen on flat days.
Old legs, new worries
Stokes cramped up so badly on day three he had to retire hurt, only to return later and post his first Test hundred in more than two years. The image of the captain doubled over one evening, batting heroically the next, has become familiar since he prioritised Test cricket and shelved white-ball duties. He will skip the Hundred again this August and has not played a limited-overs international since 2023, meaning there could be a two-month competitive gap between next week’s Oval Test and the Ashes opener in Brisbane.
Michael Vaughan spelled out the broader stakes. “We saw today how much he is missed,” he told BBC Test Match Special. “England’s hope in Australia will rely on his fitness.”
Sunday shapes up, then, as another chapter in the Stokes soap opera. England need eight wickets, India 231 runs to make them bat again. A new ball is due after eight overs; the forecast is dry; the crowd is sold out. Stokes will not hide – he rarely does – but first his body has to say yes.
