Stokes, back in the squad for the first time in nine weeks after a hamstring tear had ruled him out of their home series against Sri Lanka as well as last day’s first Test, told Sky Sports that he had behaved “tired and grumpy.” “old man” when he shouted at his players at a crucial moment in Pakistan’s second innings.
Closer in, as Jack Leach fumbled level to get rid of a useless bachelor in Carse’s next pass, Stokes let out a roar of exasperation, which, while understandable in the cases, was out of character for a captain who has extolled to a blameless player. climate during his two and a half years of reign.
“I actually apologized to the group that was there last night,” Stokes said afterward. “It’s the first time in my captaincy that I let my emotions show in my body language, in how I felt while the game was going on. I admitted it and I’m very upset with myself for letting it out.
“It’s something I don’t need to do, or be visible to do,” he added. “No one intends to post catches, but this just goes to show how remarkable the catches are in these states of the subcontinent, because they don’t come up that often. So I apologized to the crowd and told them it was necessary on my part. “Last night it was a tired and grumpy guy. “You will never see that happen again.”
“I was a bit surprised, but everyone knows how passionate Ben is and what it means to him to play games for England,” McCullum told Sky Sports. “We’ve seen him through his bloody mentality to recover from once-significant trauma and do it in a nine-week period, and in subsequent 40-degree states.
“I think maybe that’s what some of that frustration led to, it certainly wasn’t directed at any of the players,” he added. “It was more about trying to gauge the pace of the game and impact it. But look, it’ll be better for the run. And I thought about the second inning. [where he made 37 from 36 balls] It seemed like he had this method with which he could pressure the opposition. “He’s at his best when he does that.”
Stokes himself said the challenge of having to get his condition back under control was complicated as he had been denied competitive cricket since tearing his hamstring during batting week at the Hundred in August.
“I have worked very, very hard to get fit for this test match, but nothing can prepare you to excel on the field when it is hot,” he said. “Training doesn’t do that, so it was great to get through this test match, it fills me up really well going into next week, and it was also good to get a few overs under my belt. That was the one. “What I felt was that I was missing But obviously, when you get into the game and you feel like it’s on the line, nothing can stop me from doing that.”
“It’s been fantastic,” Stokes said. “In these two games he has shown why we pick him in all formats, not just Test cricket, going forward. He keeps attacking, ball after ball, spell after spell. Obviously, when the ball starts swinging back, comes into play even more. Having his hitting ability back in the order is huge for us. It’s been really good and it’s going to increase his value even more than it already was.”
McCullum, without a doubt, Carse has been the “standout” of England’s attack. “I wouldn’t say I was surprised, because he had the reputation of someone who could play at a good pace with a big heart, to continue attacking with a dizzying rebound,” he said. “To be able to do it in England is one thing, to do it on a surface that didn’t offer much for fast bowlers is just extraordinary. “We’re trying to build a battery of fast bowlers, and Carse has certainly managed to put his name on it. that.”
As a former Check goalkeeper, McCullum also defended Smith’s performance in the wake of his costly mistake on night three. After three brilliant takes in the first innings, it was a major blot on what has been an excellent start to Smith’s tenure in England, a week in which his dual ratings of 21 and 6 represented his lowest contribution with the bat in eight exams.
“You’re not going to get a stricter set of conditions for wicket-keeping,” McCullum said. “Jamie is very disappointed to have dropped that catch. But other than that, I thought his defense was as good as I’ve seen in these conditions, particularly from a foreign goalkeeper.
“He’s just teasing, and clearly every tackle, he’s looking to push opponents on that surface, which can be very difficult, but that’s his natural sport. “He’s becoming a really important player for us.
“But that’s where you also have to have the ability to turn the page pretty quickly, because if you ever let your mistakes dictate your attitude and your confidence, then you’re in for hell. The mistakes in this game are I’ll be a part of this, but the “99% of what Jamie has done in this Test match has been absolutely outstanding and that will be the message for him.”
