England’s Ben Stokes during the press conference. Photo: Action Images via Reuters
Success breeds success, and Bazball-era England has been a shining example of this.
Starting in June 2022, England has chased six targets of 250 or more successfully. Two of these have come against India – 378 here in Birmingham in July 2022 and 371 in Leeds last week, which also happen to be its top-two run pursuits in history.
“We’re confident in our abilities to be able to go out and chase when we have to bat in the fourth innings,” captain Ben Stokes said on Tuesday (July 1, 2025), ahead of the second Test.
“That obviously comes from a lot of good experiences over the last three or four years. So, going out there in the fourth innings, you’re naturally confident. Still, 370 [371 in Headingley] is a lot of runs, and we knew we had to play very, very well to get close. So, [there is] even more confidence from last week, but this week is a new game. We start from zero again.”
Stokes was also pleased with the way his body held up as he bowled 35 overs, six months after his hamstring surgery.
“I did everything possible to not worry about anything outside of what we normally worry about,” the 34-year-old said. “But coming out of that game, feeling good in all of my spells, rhythm-wise, being able to have spells throughout the day… it’s all coming out nicely. I managed to maintain my pace, which was one of the things I wanted to concentrate on”.
Published – July 01, 2025 09:19 pm IST
