Ben Stokes said on Tuesday that he was glad to hear South Africa players talk about England new scam “Baseball” approach ahead of the first test on The Lord’s even as he distanced himself from the hype.
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Speaking last week, the South African captain Dean Elgar said he had “Absolutely no interest” in reboot style for England, who have won four out of four so far under a new management team of skipper Stokes and head coach Brendan McCallum.
“Baseball” a reference to McCullum’s nickname, and Elgar also suggested he was skeptical about how successful he would be in the long-term in the five-day format.
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Stokes, speaking ahead of the first Test of the three-match series, pointed out that the question had been raised in the Proteas camp.
“The opposition seems to be talking a lot about it now – we’re not really talking about it much.” said the station wagon.
“We’re just concentrating on what we’re doing.
“We’re not going into it too much, but I’m glad Dean and the South African team are saying they’re not interested and then continuing to talk about it.
“We have a style of play, they have a style of play. At the end of the day, it’s bat versus ball and whoever plays the best in a Test match is more likely to win.”
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England made just one change to the team that beat India in the postponed fifth Test at Edgbaston last month, recalling top wicket-taker Ben Fox after battling Covid-19 in place of stand-in Sam Billings.
“It was definitely a pretty easy decision based on our previous four performances,” said Ben Stokes.
“Foxy is the best goalkeeper in the world. To have world-class quality behind the stumps is almost like a cushion, knowing someone with his qualifications is there.”
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England’s attack will once again be led by their all-time Test wicket-taker James Anderson, still going strong at the age of 40.
“It’s phenomenal. He’s got the ‘freak’ label to be able to do what he’s doing at that age.” Stokes said.
“I was shouting at him in the field the other day like I was shouting 40 at him and he didn’t like it very much. But I think he’s an incredible ambassador for the game and also an ambassador for fast bowlers in the future – for them to look at a man in his 40s to say he’s still one of the best in the world.”
Garin Lambley © Agence France-Presse
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