In sport, words like “mentality” and “will to win” are thrown around constantly. Both are overrated qualities. Even when a sportsman’s or team’s mindset is top class, it is quality that yields results. However, every now and then a match, or matches, can be won by an individual’s, or individuals’, desire. Sometimes in history fixtures have been turned on their head because people have wanted them to. Think Ian Botham in the 1981 Ashes; think Andrew Flintoff at Edgbaston in 2005. Both instances required great performances from the team as a whole, but those two were the catalysts for success.
Every English all-rounder who bowls fast will be compared to Botham and Flintoff for now and ever more [that’s all]. All will be expected to be able to drive the team in the same way that those two did; all will be expected to be able to average in the 30s in both disciplines at least; all will be expected to bowl at 90mph and hit the ball far with regularity. Ever since Flintoff retired England have been missing someone like this.
In the last five years or so the number six and fifth bowler slots have given English cricket many a headache. All kinds of different experiments have been tried. Batsmen who can bowl a bit and bowlers who can bat a bit have been put in the team in the hope that things will work out. This has brought some short-term success but no long-term replacement for “Freddie” has been found. Until now (possibly), that is.
Ben Stokes’ first two years in Test cricket were inconsistent at best. Moments of brilliance, such as his 120 at Perth in the 2013-14 Ashes—a rare highlight in the series—were followed by moments of disappointment and disaster, such as his picking up an injury by punching a locker in frustration during a tour of the West Indies. He showed signs of being an international class player but only in flashes.
In the last few months, that inconsistency has started to go away. After a man-of-the-match performance at Lord’s against New Zealand in May 2015, he had what can be described as a “good” Ashes. A batting average of 25 and a bowling average of 33 is no disgrace, but what was much more important than the statistics was that, in each Test, he did well either with bat or ball on at least one occasion. Even better, he had a real breakthrough when he took six wickets in the final innings of the fourth Test to seal the series. He contributed to wins but was not at fault for losses.
The series against Pakistan in the UAE was a similar story. In the first match he did very well to pick up four wickets against a dominant batting line-up and scored a respectable half-century as he built a partnership with Alastair Cook. In the second he produced little of note. In the third, and forgive me for being a bit romantic, he showed some heart by batting at the bottom of the order through a shoulder injury in a losing cause.
Before he came to South Africa, Stokes had shown himself to be a serviceable international all-rounder with a knack for picking up wickets and an ability to score runs quickly. Not quite Ian Botham, but a useful weapon to have in a winning team’s armoury. But in the past few weeks he has shown that he could be even more than that.
You’ll have seen the 258. You’ll know how special and entertaining that innings was; how it was worth the entrance fee or the hours spent watching it on its own. On that day Stokes took his trait of being able to change games by scoring quickly to a new level. Scoring a double century is one thing, but scoring it in just 167 balls is quite another kettle of fish. That was the best sign of his greatness so far. A “serviceable” cricketer simply would not be able to do that. The match ended in a draw but that innings still deserves to go down as one of the greatest in English history.
One innings alone is not enough to show that a player is the replacement for Freddie Flintoff. In fact, his brilliant half-century in the third Test, when England were truly in a losing position, may have been as much of an illustration of his ability as the double century. Regardless, what Stokes has shown in this series is that he could be a great all-rounder and not just a respectable one.
Let us go back to what will be expected of future English all-rounders; the latter two criteria first. “To be able to average in the 30s in both disciplines at least”. Stokes has done that, although the bowling average needs to come down to the low 30s. “To bowl at 90mph and hit the ball far with regularity”. He can’t quite bowl that fast, but he makes up for that by swinging the ball, and he’s certainly shown that he can hit the ball far on a regular basis. If he continues to improve in both areas then he’ll have great success for his country.
However, it is that final criterion: “to be able to drive the team in the same way that those two did” which will turn him into a legend if he can add it to his armoury, and Stokes definitely has the character and mindset to do it.
Joe Root, Alastair Cook, Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad are all able to do this in one discipline, but what England have been crying out for is a game-changer who can transform a team’s fortunes both with bat and ball. That’s what made Botham and Flintoff special. They could hit big scores which made their team competitive in double quick time or they could tear through batting line-ups to put the team in a winning position. It is very early days but there is no reason why Stokes can’t be that man.
It is very clear that Ben Stokes has a serious desire to win. When he doesn’t win he gets very frustrated indeed. He has done it in small doses already, but if he can use that frustration to win matches on his own then he will be a legend in English and world cricket.
