England

Stokes is back in tow as a specialist batter after reversing his 50-over retirement last month ahead of England’s defence of their World Cup crown in India and got back into the groove with 52 off 69 balls.

It was not his most fluent effort but was one of four fifty-plus scores on a tricky pitch after the hosts were asked to bat first, with Dawid Malan contributing 54 off 53 balls before Jos Buttler top-scored with 72 off 68 deliveries.

Liam Livingstone added some impetus with a sparky 52 from 40 balls at the back end of an innings in which left-arm spinner Rachin Ravindra finished with career-best international figures of three for 48.

The knocks of Malan and Livingstone are timely given their places in England’s provisional World Cup squad are thought to be the most vulnerable as Harry Brook makes a late case for selection.

Brook had an opportunity to push his claims after being shunted to open alongside Malan, with England cautious over Jonny Bairstow’s shoulder niggle sustained in the drawn T20 series and Jason Roy waking up on Friday morning with a back spasm that precluded his involvement.

It was his first time opening the batting in List A cricket and he tickled the first ball off his thigh to the boundary but it was Malan who stamped his authority on the union from then on, capitalising on wide or overpitched deliveries to the tune of six fours in the space of 18 deliveries at one point.

Malan was adept on the pull as New Zealand’s quicks dragged back their lengths, dispatching Kyle Jamieson then Lockie Ferguson to bring up a 48-ball half-century – his eighth fifty-plus score in 19 ODI innings.

He was unable to kick on, though, as Ravindra halted England in their tracks after an 80-run opening stand. The slow left-armer was already appealing when Malan missed a clip off his pads and only belatedly noticed the ball spin back and thud into off-stump.

Brook then departed in the next over for a pedestrian 25 off 41 balls as a brute of a bouncer from Ferguson brushed his glove on the way through to New Zealand captain Tom Latham.

Matters might have worsened for England as another sharply rising delivery caught Stokes out first up although the ball ballooned agonisingly over Glenn Phillips at gully.

Joe Root scratched his way to six off 15 balls but top-edged a slog sweep to Daryl Mitchell in the ring to give Ravindra his second wicket.

He conceded just eight runs in four overs before Buttler displayed a rare show of aggression by clattering the spinner over the shorter straight boundary for six.

With bowling all-rounder Chris Woakes at seven, Stokes and Buttler settled for watchful accumulation over outright might.

Buttler was busier and the pair both went to their fifties. But the ball after heaving Ravindra into the stands for his first six to go with three fours, Stokes clubbed to cover to end an 88-run stand.

Ravindra was taken the distance by Buttler while Livingstone upped the ante with three successive sixes off the expensive Jamieson.

Either side of two slower balls being shovelled over the leg-side boundary, Livingstone bludgeoned a pace-on delivery back over Jamieson’s head.

Livingstone and Buttler both miscued Tim Southee slower balls up in the air to end England’s hopes of a 300-plus total but David Willey’s 21 not out off 11 balls got them close.

England captain Stokes had seen New Zealand advance from their overnight 225-5 to post 329 all out, before a collapse saw the home side slump to 21-4 in reply at Headingley.

That brought Stokes to the middle, and he elected to go immediately on the attack.

From the third ball he faced, Stokes slapped Tim Southee's delivery high over the long-off boundary.

It took him to a career haul of 100 Test sixes, matching the total achieved by former Australia wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist.

The only man to plunder more is Brendon McCullum, the New Zealand great who is now England's Test head coach.

McCullum cleared the ropes 107 times in his distinguished Test career.

The all-out-attack approach from Stokes did not bring the desired results, with the skipper cracking a delivery from Neil Wagner to Kane Williamson at mid-off to be out for 18 from 13 deliveries.

When Ben Foakes was pegged leg before wicket three balls later, without any addition to the score, England were in deep trouble on 55-6, having earlier seen Alex Lees, Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley bowled by the hugely impressive Trent Boult.

The final match of the series is effectively a dead rubber, however, with England holding an unassailable 2-0 lead.

Stokes is set to become the 16th Englishman to three figures on Thursday a little over a decade on from his Adelaide debut, where he memorably had a testy exchange with Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin.

That combative nature has been a constant in a career of stratospheric highs and crushing lows, but he is naturally averse to celebrating personal milestones, as evidenced most acutely at Headingley in 2019.

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On that occasion, Stokes barely acknowledged his hundred and only celebrated after hauling England to a famous victory and he stayed true to type when asked to talk up his 100th Test match.

“I guess it’s a sign of longevity,” he said, almost apologetically. “It’s just a number. Every Test is just as important as the next one. Then there’s the next one, which will be 101 – it’s just one more.

“I don’t want it to sound like I’m not thankful for the opportunities I’ve had. There will be a time when I can (reflect on what he has achieved) a bit more.

“But milestones and stuff like that – it’s not done until it’s done.

“While I’m still playing and wanting to achieve a lot, driving the team, giving individuals what I think is the best platform for them to be successful is where all my thoughts are at the moment.”

Another character trait that has been evident in Stokes the captain is his eagerness to roll the dice and risk defeat in pursuit of victory, largely paying off with six of the former and 14 of the latter.

He is therefore highly unlikely to find himself in the same situation Sir Alastair Cook did in England’s last visit to the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in November 2016, when the tourists received some criticism for declaring too late and setting India 310 to win in a minimum of 49 overs.

With this series deadlocked at 1-1, the temptation could be to avoid defeat at all costs after losing last time out but Stokes was having none of it.

“I don’t get that much pleasure out of a draw,” Stokes said. “I’d much rather lose trying to win. But not winning doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. Everything is just aimed towards what can we do.

“Losing always sucks but we’ve lost all (six) games trying to win them. We’ll never go to the grave not knowing if we could have done something a bit different.”

Stokes’ immediate thoughts are on whether to stick with James Anderson and a trio of callow spinners or reintroduce Mark Wood and go with two specialist fast bowlers for the first time on this tour of India.

While Wood was wicketless in the win at Hyderabad and made way for Anderson in the Visakhapatnam defeat, his express pace offers an extra dimension on a pitch renowned for being batter-friendly.

“If we were to go with two seamers the reasons why we would look at Jimmy and Woody would be I just like to have a point of difference,” Stokes said. “And India is never a three-seamer option.”

Even though Jack Leach is out of the last three Tests, Stokes will stick to his pledge not to bowl in this series following surgery on a longstanding left knee injury 11 weeks ago.

Stokes, who last bowled competitively in July last year, sent down three overs in training on Tuesday morning at what he estimated was about 70 per cent intensity.

“It’s little and often now,” the 32-year-old said. “We don’t have a plan with where I go with my intensity. It’s just how I feel at the time, but also not getting too far ahead. It was another step forward.

“But I’ve pinky promised my physio I won’t be loosening up to bowl even if everything is feeling well because that would just be a risk that’s not worth it.”

Stokes ends India batsman Virat Kohli's three-year reign in possession of the honour and becomes the first Englishman since fellow all-rounder Andrew Flintoff to be considered the best player in the global game by the esteemed publication.

The body of work amassed by Stokes over the course of an outstanding 2019 made him an obvious frontrunner for such recognition.

He top-scored with an unbeaten 84 as England took the World Cup final into a super over, where Stokes and Jos Buttler scored 15 before the hosts won on the boundary count back rule at Lord's.

Remarkably, that was not Stokes' finest hour of the English summer, as he went on to score 135 not out to seal an enthralling one-wicket win over Australia in the fourth Ashes Test at Headingley – an innings to rank alongside the all-time greats in cricket's longest format.

Jofra Archer, another standout performer in England's World Cup and Ashes campaigns was named as one of Wisden's five cricketers of the year for 2019, along with Australia duo Marnus Labuschagne and Pat Cummins.

Labuschagne's introduction to the series came as a concussion substitute when Steve Smith was struck by a brutish Archer bouncer and he went on to make the number three position his own, averaging 112 in the Australian summer that followed.

Cummins underlined his status as the number one pace bowler in the world with 29 wickets against England in an urn-retaining 2-2 draw.

That is a standing Archer can certainly aspire to, having claimed 55 wickets across all formats in his breakthrough international year.

Wisden's five cricketers of 2019 were rounded out by Simon Harmer, the Essex spinner whose 83 wickets gave him 12 more scalps than any other bowler on the way to County Championship glory, and Ellyse Perry.

Perry was Australia's leading run-scorer (378) and wicket-taker (15) in the 2019 Women's Ashes and was also named the leading women's player in the world.

West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell is the leading T20 cricketer.

England host their old rivals this summer, with the first Test getting under way at Edgbaston on June 16, having won just one of the last five series against Australia.

Stokes has led his team to victory in 11 of his 13 Tests since he was installed as permanent skipper at the start of last summer.

He and coach Brendon McCullum have overseen a change of approach in preparation for an attempt to regain the Ashes urn for the first time since 2015, following their 4-1 drubbing Down Under in 2021/22.

“It’s not like any other series,” Stokes wrote for the Players’ Tribune.

“There’s the pressure, the hype and the extra noise that comes with it, but we’re ready for all that this summer.

“We’ve had some good results in the last year and the mindset in the group is so strong. Everyone is fully committed to what we’re doing.

“We know how good we are and that on our good days we can beat anyone on their good days.”

Stokes, 32, who hit an unbeaten 135 as England battled back to chase down 359 and beat Australia in a memorable meeting at Headingley in 2019, wants the team to go into the latest series unburdened by any pressure.

“I promise you: We’re going to play without fear,” he added.

“We want to create an environment where everyone has the freedom to try things without fear. I know it hasn’t always been that way, even though we’ve always had the ability.

“Hold nothing back. Express yourself. Show us what you can really do.

“And you know what? If you fail, then you fail. So what? As captain, I’m not going to be chewing people out in press conferences or in the media for trying to play a big shot.

“And behind the scenes, you’re not gonna get a slap on the wrist from me or Brendon McCullum about it.

“I don’t want this to be taken out of context. Just because I say it’s alright to fail, it doesn’t mean I’m fine with losing. I hate losing.”

England were furious over the manner of Jonny Bairstow’s dismissal, who was stumped by Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey after the batsman strayed from his crease believing the ball was dead.

Stokes told Sky Sports: “I think there’s quite a lot of factors you’ve got to take into that.

“At the end of the day it’s out, (but) if the shoe was on the other foot I’d probably just have a little think about the spirit of the game. It’s happened and we’ve just got to move on with what’s in front of us.”

Australia skipper Pat Cummins was unrepentant over the incident, insisting: “I think Carey saw it happening a few balls previously.

“There’s no pause, you catch it and have a throw. I thought it was totally fair play. That’s how the rule is – I know some people might disagree a lot.”

Fans booed the Australians and there appeared to be a number of flashpoints when the players exited through the famous Long Room during the lunch interval.

However, former England captains Andrew Strauss and Eoin Morgan, working as post-match analysts for Sky, agreed with Cummins’ opinion.

Strauss said he was “pretty comfortable with what Australia did there”, while Morgan added: “I don’t see it compromising the spirit of the game. He (Bairstow) was just being naive, it was almost like he was batting in his own bubble.”

Stokes admitted his thrilling knock of 155 was scant consolation for a difficult defeat but insisted the series was far from finished.

“Having experienced something like that before, you’re able to look back and have some kind of game plan, but unfortunately it just wasn’t enough for us today,” said Stokes.

“It got to the point where Australia changed their plans so I just had to change the way I was going about it.

“It’s a tough one to swallow going so close, but being involved in such a fantastic game was awesome. We’re 2-0 down but we’ve got three games left so we know we can do it.”

Australia batter Steve Smith, who pipped Stokes to the man of the match award for his first-innings knock of 110, hailed his England counterpart as a “freak”.

“He’s an unbelievable player, some of the things he can pull off on this ground and in this game of cricket, he’s a freak,” said Smith.

“The way he went about it, targeting that one side, smacking them down the hill and batting the other end. He’s a freak, an unbelievable player.”

Reflecting on his missed opportunity to catch Stokes earlier in his innings, Smith added: “It’s difficult giving guys like that lives. The way he plays chasing totals, the way he gets it done, it was an incredible knock.”

Stokes, playing his third match since agreeing to return to 50-over cricket, usurped Jason Roy’s five-year old record of 180 in emphatic fashion with his ninth six of a brutal innings.

He fell two balls later, denying him the chance of becoming England’s first double-centurion, but over the course of 124 deliveries he proved just what the side have been missing during his year-long one-day absence.

England have troubled India but Stokes is facing up to his first series defeat as captain, with Rohit Sharma’s side holding a 3-1 lead heading into the final Test, starting on Thursday in Dharamsala.

Past England teams might have already let their thoughts drift towards the flight home after a long tour but Stokes was adamant this iteration are hungry to finish the series on a positive note.

Indeed, one of the major differences he sees in his side since their last assignment – a 2-2 draw against Australia – is their readiness to do what is necessary to get into the team and keep the spot.

“The individuals and the team have massively evolved on this tour,” he said. “Progression doesn’t always show itself with the results. It doesn’t mean that we’ve gone backwards.

“I think the way in which everyone committed to becoming a better version of themselves from when we last played was quite obvious; everyone’s fitter, everyone was – I don’t want to say more desire – but it was just a really different feel around how we operated from the summer before.

“When you know that you’re part of something special, you want to work your nuts off to keep your place in the team.

“We’ve been on so many India tours, you know what it’s like when you get to an end of a long one that sometimes you start thinking about the end of the game, whereas honestly, I don’t think that anyone is thinking like that because every opportunity we feel at the moment is special to play for England.”

Before training at the picturesque HPCA Stadium on Wednesday, some England players are set to travel around 10km north and visit the Dalai Lama at his home in McLeod Ganj, although Stokes is unlikely to be among the contingent.

He will instead contemplate changes to his line-up and whether to include an extra seamer in the cooler mountain conditions, with James Anderson and Ollie Robinson fit after minor thigh and back troubles.

Stokes, though, insisted the XI would not be predicated on him returning to bowling for the first time since last July and doing so following left knee surgery last November would merely be a “bonus”.

Shoaib Bashir had a cut on his spinning finger tended to at Tuesday’s practice after a mammoth 70-over stint in Ranchi. This type of injury is common for spinners who experience an increase in workload, as evidenced by Moeen Ali’s struggles with the same issue last summer, but Stokes played down any worries.

“He’s probably bowled more in the last two months than he has ever,” Stokes said. “He was fine, he was just starting to feel it but I don’t think there’s any concern there.

“I put that down to him probably bowling more balls here in two months than he has for however long he’s been playing cricket for to be honest.”

Jonny Bairstow keeps his spot in the side despite a quiet series with the bat and will play his 100th Test, a dozen years on from his debut at Lord’s against the West Indies.

“I’m super excited for him and he’s been quite chipper the last couple of days,” Stokes said.

“I’ve been there for a lot of his career. Age-group cricket, I played against him and with him. Obviously we went on to play loads of cricket for England together.

“He’s one of England’s finest all-format batters, he’s done some unbelievable things with the red ball and the white ball.”

Asked about his white-ball intentions this year, Stokes confirmed he would be available for selection for the T20 World Cup in June after inspiring England to glory in the 2022 final in Australia.

“I’ve not even thought about that but I’m available,” he added. “Whether or not I’m in the plans for that is a different thing. But I still want to be part of that team going forward.”

Stokes’ comeback could not have come at a better moment for a side whose title defence is on the rocks after a shock defeat to Afghanistan left them with a single win to their name.

The charismatic Test skipper suffered a hip injury during England’s warm-up week in Guwahati and has been sidelined ever since, but has given himself the green light to face the Proteas in Mumbai on Saturday.

Speaking before a training session at the Wankhede Stadium that will double up as a final vigorous fitness test, Stokes told BBC Radio’s Test Match Special: “It was a frustrating little niggle to get before the tournament but I have worked very hard to get back to where I am and making myself ready to be available for selection.

“We have had a few days off since the last game and first training session here in Mumbai. I’ll give it a good push but, yes, I think everything is pretty good. I am in a good place.”

It may be tempting to view Stokes as a saviour riding to the rescue – a role he has performed plenty of times over the course of his career, not least in the 2019 World Cup final – but he distanced himself from the idea.

Responding to the weight of expectation that will follow him on to the field, which has only grown with England’s struggles so far, he said: “I deal with it pretty easy to be honest, because I know I am one person in a team sport.

“No one looks to one person in this team to inspire them or anything like that. It is not the case that if I do come in then all of a sudden we are going to do well. It is just one of those things that gets spoken about a lot but I don’t read into too much.

“Everyone that walks out on to that field for England is a match-winner and can do something individually that can win us a game. We just need to tone it down a bit on me coming back in.”

The tourists took a 2-0 Ashes lead as they wrapped up a 43-run victory in the second Test at the home of cricket, but a gripping five-day contest seems destined to be remembered for the flashpoint – as well as Stokes’ magnificent century in response.

Alex Carey’s opportunistic stumping of Bairstow was the pivot point, with the wicketkeeper throwing down the stumps as England’s number seven wandered out of his crease in the belief that Cameron Green’s over was complete.

The letter of the law meant Bairstow had to go as the ball was not officially considered dead, but a capacity Lord’s crowd reacted in outrage to what they saw as an underhand tactic. Deafening boos and endless refrains of “same old Aussies, always cheating” dominated for the rest of the day as Stokes blazed a defiant 155.

The 32-year-old’s brilliant best was not enough as he fell short of completing a 371-run chase that may have trumped his Headingley heroics in 2019 and he could not hide his disappointment at the nature of the Bairstow stumping.

“The first thing that needs to be said is that it is out. But would I want to win a game in that manner? The answer for me is no,” he said.

“Jonny was in his crease, then left his crease to come out and have the conversation between overs like every batsman does.

“For Australia it was the matchwinning moment. If I was fielding captain at the time I would have put a lot more pressure on the umpires to ask them what their decision was around the (end of the) over. Then I would have had a real deep think about the spirit of the game.”

Asked if his approach would change for the rest of the series now that Australia had set the bar, Stokes said: “Would I do that back to them? No, I’m not looking to do something like that because they did it.”

Pat Cummins, long known for his sunny disposition and mild manner, appeared taken aback by the sustained jeers from the stands. More loud boos followed the final wicket of the match, drowning out the cheers of the touring group in green and gold, and Australia captain Cummins was barracked at the post-match presentation.

However, he made no apologies for upholding the appeal against Bairstow and said the England keeper had been looking for similar opportunities throughout the match.

“It’s in the laws, totally fair play. That’s how I saw it,” he said.

“You see Jonny do it all the time, he did it day one to (David) Warner and in 2019 to Steve (Smith). It’s what keepers do if you see an opportunity. All credit to Carey, he rolled it at the stumps, Jonny left his crease and you leave the rest to the umpires.”

Stokes did his best to block out the external noise while he was batting – a remarkable knock of controlled aggression, tactical strike rotation and brute force – but was taken aback by the unprecedented reaction at a ground known for its laidback ‘Lord’s hum’.

He expects more of the same at Headingley next week and expects the volume to be cranked up.

“I definitely think it’s going to be ramped up,” he said.

“When we go to Australia we get lambasted as well – 90,000 Australians at the MCG cursing at you. That’s part of the sport we play, you get thousands of people who want their team to win and they’ll just jump on something.

“I could see it was ramping up and getting a bit vocal, but it wasn’t until I got out and went out on the balcony to watch the remaining half hour…I was just like “I’ve never heard Lord’s like this”. It reminded me of the World Cup final in 2019.

“It was nice to see Lord’s (like that), a ground that’s not got a reputation for the atmosphere and noise. Today was one of the days where Lord’s showed up.”

England now need to show up themselves. After successive defeats to start the series they need to a hat-trick of wins at Headingley, Old Trafford and The Oval to reclaim the urn.

“We’ve won 3-0 against New Zealand and we won 3-0 against Pakistan, in Pakistan,” was Stokes’ defiant message as he looked back on past glories from his year as captain.

“We’ve won three games in a row twice. All we’re thinking about is winning the series 3-2. We have to win these three games to get this urn back and we’re a team who are obviously willing to put ourselves out there and do things against the narrative. So, these next three games are an even better opportunity for us than we have ever found ourselves in before.”

England named a 15-man squad for Thursday’s third Test, with back-up leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed dropping out alongside seamer Matthew Potts. Moeen Ali (index finger) and Mark Wood – overlooked this week due to fitness concerns – retained their places, as did vice-captain Ollie Pope, who injured his right shoulder while fielding.

Stokes has been struggling badly with a chronic left knee problem for the past year and has been in visible pain throughout the current series against Australia.

Having set his heart on playing a full all-rounder’s role this summer, he has been able to offer just 29 overs with the ball and has not bowled at all in the last two Tests. Batting and fielding also appears to push him to the limit at times and, at the age of 32, a solution needs to be found.

This week’s Ashes finale at the Kia Oval, which England must win to square the scoreline at 2-2, is England’s last red-ball game for six months – a window that offers Stokes the chance to tackle the issue head on.

He had a cortisone injection ahead of this year’s Indian Premier League to help manage his symptoms and, asked if he would now consider going one step further with surgery, he said: “Yeah, it’s something I obviously want to get sorted.

“The times I’ve seen specialists and stuff like that, there has been cricket around, so as it’s been manageable we’ve just cracked on.

“I was pretty broken after the Lord’s game, but I still managed to walk out. I think this is a good time to have some serious conversations with medics around what I could potentially do to get a role in which I can bowl without having to worry about my knee. Those are conversations we will be able to have in that time off.

“It has been frustrating in the last couple of years, not being able to have the same impact and play the same role that I have done for the last 10 years.

“So it’s obviously something that I want to be able to do and hopefully I can get sorted. I keep forgetting that I’m ageing every day.”

Regardless of what happens in the next five days in south London, Stokes knows it will be Pat Cummins lifting the urn instead of him at the end of the game.

That means England are now guaranteed at least a decade between Ashes wins, having last triumphed in 2015, and Stokes would love to be fit and firing to lead the charge Down Under next time around.

“It’d be nice to go out to Australia in 2025 and have a good chance of winning,” he said.

“How this series has gone and how close we were, it does make you think when we next go to Australia do we have a better chance than the last few times?

“The way in which Australians and England players speak about the Ashes, it’s obviously the big one. The Ashes is such an important series for English and Australian cricket and it would be nice to say I’ve won it twice.”

In the short term, Stokes has to work out how to spend his time away. He and head coach Brendon McCullum have worked hard bonding the Test team together over a hectic 12-month period and now face a hiatus before touring India in January.

Stokes has an open invitation to throw his hat back into the ring for England’s 50-over World Cup defence this autumn, but insisted he had no second thoughts about about leaving ODI cricket behind.

“I’m retired,” was his unambiguous response to the idea.

“I’m going on holiday after this game. That’s as far as I’m thinking. But there’s only so much ‘break’ you can cope with. You really do miss that environment, when you’re around the other lads.

“In two or three weeks I’ll probably get bored and just schedule a squad game or something like that.”

England are set to return to action with three behind-closed-doors Tests against the Windies at the Rose Bowl and Old Trafford.

However, current five-day captain Root may be missing for one of those fixtures as his wife, Carrie, is due to give birth, with the batsman conceding he would leave the bio-secure areas in Southampton and Manchester to attend the birth.

Root has not missed a Test since being named captain in 2017 but has backed current vice-captain Stokes to step up should he not be available.

However, Pietersen has advised against having all-rounder Stokes fill the void given his own brief experience of a role he had for only three Tests.

"Do I want to see Ben Stokes change from who he is and the current player he is? Probably not, Jos Buttler would be my guy," Pietersen, who resigned as England captain in 2009, told talkSPORT.

"The entertainers and the guys that have to carry the mantle in the team sometimes aren't the best captains and sometimes struggle with the extra added pressure.

"As a player you are looked at completely differently until that phone call comes and you are announced as the Test captain.

"Responsibilities change, communication changes, the way in which you carry yourself in the dressing room changes.

"I struggled with it, I absolutely hated it and I was rubbish. You have to change and I couldn't command the respect of the dressing room. You say something and it is frowned upon, it is a completely different story."

The 2019 champions arrived in Pune for a bottom-of-the-table clash with a five-match losing streak behind them and the knowledge that another slip up would see them miss out on ODI cricket’s next global event in 2025.

But despite wobbling once again with the bat – going from 133 for one to 192 for six – Stokes had the will and skill to carry his side to a 160-run victory.

He struck 108 from 84 balls, grafting hard to begin with then accelerating sharply, to lift England to an imposing 339 for nine.

That was always going to be too many for a Dutch side who lacked the firepower to match Stokes and they wilted for 179 all out.

With two points and a healthy boost to their net run-rate England climbed from 10th to seventh in one jump, overtaking their opponents, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

The tourists won by 189 runs, claiming the 10th wicket in the Proteas' second innings with just over half an hour left to play on day five, as Stokes, who had previously shone with the bat, took the last three wickets in dramatic fashion.

With 26 overs remaining, it looked like the hosts would bat out the day for a draw with Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen well set and their team on 237-5

But De Kock fell for 50 after a poor shot off Joe Denly before Van der Dussen's 194-minute, 140-ball innings for just 17 ended tamely when he was caught off Stuart Broad down the legside. 

Debutant Pieter Malan made 84 after surviving for 288 deliveries, but Stokes helped England prevail and gave coach Chris Silverwood his first Test win in four attempts despite largely being without the injured James Anderson after lunch.

There are two more Tests to come in the four-match series, with the next contest in Port Elizabeth starting on January 16.

Starting the day on 126-2, Keshav Maharaj soon fell for two in the third over, Anderson dismissing him plumb lbw, with the nightwatchman not even waiting for the umpire's finger.

That brought Proteas captain Faf du Plessis to the crease for what the hosts hoped would be a match-saving partnership with Malan.

The skipper, so often his side's final-innings hero, moved on to 19 but got out in poor fashion, giving his wicket away poorly when he swept straight to Denly at square leg off Dom Bess.

That meant South Africa were four down at lunch and the crucial wicket of Malan early in the second session, Sam Curran forcing an edge to second slip where Stokes was waiting gratefully, appeared to have the tourists in control.

The hosts desperately needed a partnership and it arrived through De Kock and Van der Dussen, who managed well as the 32 overs after lunch went for just 55 runs and one wicket.

But just as it looked like South Africa were comfortable, De Kock, who brought up his fifty with a four off Curran, could not believe what he had done when he sent a long hop from Denly straight to Zak Crawley.

England then saw a field change pay immediate dividends, Anderson catching Van der Dussen at leg gully before Stokes (3-35) found the edge of Dwaine Pretorius with captain Joe Root taking a smart catch at slip.

Anrich Nortje went for a golden duck next ball, Crawley keeping his cool in the slips to make the catch at the second attempt while on the ground.

And Vernon Philander was the last man to fall as he fended Stokes to gully, ending the retiring star's attempt to see South Africa through to the close at his home stadium.

In an unforgettable fifth day finish at the home of cricket, the tourists were heckled and booed from the field after wrapping up a 43-run success despite Stokes’ best efforts.

He hit a jaw-dropping 155, whipped into a six-hitting frenzy by Bairstow’s bizarre stumping by Alex Carey, but could not take his side all the way.

Carey threw down his fellow wicketkeeper’s stumps after Bairstow ducked a Cameron Green bouncer, tapped his bat behind the crease and began to walk down the pitch to chat with Stokes.

Bairstow felt the over had been completed, which would have rendered the ball dead, but Carey’s intervention was deemed to be within the laws of the game and the wicket stood.

Nearly 32,000 fans in the stands went apoplectic and things even took an angry turn in the usually polite confines of the Long Room, where Usman Khawaja and David Warner exchanged words with jeering members. Marylebone Cricket Club later suspended the membership of three individuals pending an investigation.

Stokes made it clear the manner of the Bairstow wicket left a bitter taste and suggested he may have withdrawn the appeal in similar circumstances.

“The first thing that needs to be said is that it is out. But would I want to win a game in that manner? The answer for me is no,” he said.

“If the shoe was on the other foot, I would have a deep think about the whole spirit of the game. If I was fielding captain at the time I would have put a lot more pressure on the umpires to ask them what their decision was around the (end of the) over.

“Jonny was in his crease, then left his crease to come out and have the conversation between overs like every batsman does. For Australia it was the matchwinning moment.”

With Australia also coming out on top in a tense finish in the series opener at Edgbaston, Stokes’ side now face the prospect of becoming the first England team since 2001 to lose a home Ashes.

To win the urn back they need to win at Headingley when battle resumes on Thursday and then do the same at Old Trafford and The Oval.

“All we’re thinking about is winning the series 3-2,” he said.

“We have to win these three games to get this urn back and we’re a team who are obviously willing to put ourselves out there and do things against the narrative.

“So, these next three games are an even better opportunity for us than we have ever found ourselves in before.”

Anticipating an even more feverish atmosphere in Leeds next week, Stokes added: “I definitely think it’s going to be ramped up.

“When we go to Australia we get lambasted as well – 90,000 Australians at the MCG cursing at you. That’s part of the sport we play, you get thousands of people who want their team to win and they’ll just jump on something.”

Australia captain Pat Cummins was visibly taken aback by the vitriolic reaction he experienced but made no apologies for the Bairstow wicket.

“It’s in the laws, totally fair play. That’s how I saw it,” he said.

“You see Jonny do it all the time, he did it day one to (David) Warner and in 2019 to Steve (Smith). It’s what keepers do if you see an opportunity. All credit to Carey, he rolled it at the stumps, Jonny left his crease and you leave the rest to the umpires.”

Stokes called time on the longest white-ball format last summer, citing an “unsustainable” schedule following his appointment as captain of the Test team and amid the growing rise of franchise cricket.

England’s talismanic all-rounder continued to play Twenty20s and inspired World Cup success in Australia last November and is now apparently set to perform a U-turn ahead the World Cup in India during October and November.

England selectors will name a squad on Wednesday for September’s ODIs against New Zealand and Ireland, which act as warm-up series for the World Cup in India before the tournament begins in October.

A provisional 18-man squad for the World Cup will also be confirmed on Wednesday, with Stokes expected to be included in a huge boost to white-ball captain Jos Buttler.

When Stokes walked away from ODIs last July, it was viewed with the long-term in mind and to give him the best possible chance to lead the red-ball team for as long as possible.

An unbeaten half-century in November helped England beat Pakistan to be crowned IT20 world champions in Australia with white-ball head coach Matthew Mott admitting at the time he would try tempt Stokes out of 50-over retirement.

It seemed an unrealistic aim with Stokes managing a long-standing left knee issue to get through all five Ashes Tests this summer, but honest enough to admit “serious conversations” were required over a potential operation.

With England not due to play red-ball cricket now until January, Stokes was predicted to go under the knife during the coming months, but could now reverse his ODI retirement.

It was Buttler and Stokes who played a central role in England becoming world champions on home turf four years ago, with Stokes’ 84 not out inspiring a tied match with New Zealand in the final at Lord’s that forced a Super Over.

Further hitting from Stokes would help England set the Black Caps 16 for victory and Buttler’s run-out sealed a maiden 50-over victory for the nation.

He concluded his ODI career with 105 matches, 2,924 runs and 74 wickets.

The PA news agency has contacted Stokes’ representative and the England and Wales Cricket Board for comment.

Stokes called time on the longest white-ball format last summer, citing an “unsustainable” schedule following his appointment as captain of the Test team and amid the growing rise of franchise cricket.

England’s talismanic all-rounder continued to play Twenty20s and inspired World Cup success in Australia last November and is now apparently set to perform a U-turn ahead the World Cup in India during October and November.

England selectors will name a squad on Wednesday for September’s ODIs against New Zealand and Ireland, which act as warm-up series for the World Cup in India before the tournament begins in October.

A provisional 18-man squad for the World Cup will also be confirmed on Wednesday, with Stokes expected to be included in a huge boost to white-ball captain Jos Buttler.

When Stokes walked away from ODIs last July, it was viewed with the long-term in mind and to give him the best possible chance to lead the red-ball team for as long as possible.

An unbeaten half-century in November helped England beat Pakistan to be crowned IT20 world champions in Australia with white-ball head coach Matthew Mott admitting at the time he would try tempt Stokes out of 50-over retirement.

It seemed an unrealistic aim with Stokes managing a long-standing left knee issue to get through all five Ashes Tests this summer, but honest enough to admit “serious conversations” were required over a potential operation.

With England not due to play red-ball cricket now until January, Stokes was predicted to go under the knife during the coming months, but could now reverse his ODI retirement.

It was Buttler and Stokes who played a central role in England becoming world champions on home turf four years ago, with Stokes’ 84 not out inspiring a tied match with New Zealand in the final at Lord’s that forced a Super Over.

Further hitting from Stokes would help England set the Black Caps 16 for victory and Buttler’s run-out sealed a maiden 50-over victory for the nation.

He concluded his ODI career with 105 matches, 2,924 runs and 74 wickets.

The PA news agency has contacted Stokes’ representative and the England and Wales Cricket Board for comment.

Concerns over the Test captain’s left knee have increased over the last 18 months and he has not bowled in a match since July, his body unable to cope with the rigours of bowling.

Stokes suggested he was considering an operation after this summer’s Ashes series, which he laboured through in visible discomfort, but instead chose to come out of ODI retirement and take part in England’s title defence in India.

He missed the first three games of the campaign with a left hip injury, which has not explicitly been linked to his existing problems and, with England set to bow out after the group stages, Stokes has agreed to go under the knife.

He will see renowned knee surgeon Andy Williams – who counts Stokes’ team-mate Chris Woakes, former England captain Andrew Flintoff and a host of Premier League footballers among his previous clients – later this month.

Stokes hopes to be ready to lead England’s Test tour of India, which starts in Hyderabad on January 25 following a two-week training camp in Dubai.

Speaking on the eve of his side’s clash with Ashes rivals Australia in Ahmedabad, he said: “I am having surgery after the World Cup. There was a lot of time put into deciding when to get it done.

“It’s been a long time coming and obviously I want to get back to what I’ve been doing prior to the 18 months where I’ve had this injury. It’s been a big hindrance on me and affected what I can do for the team.

“Obviously that’s what I want to be doing. You’d hope that it means that I can get back to doing what I’ve been known for, which is playing a role as a batter and playing a role as a bowler as well.

“We’ll just see how everything goes, see how I respond to the surgery and all the rehab as well.”

Stokes had a flare up during the short tour of New Zealand in February and struggled to get match fit for Chennai Super Kings during the IPL. He subsequently played all five Ashes Tests but did not bowl in the last three.

He has spoken several times of his frustrations at not being able to impact the game with the ball and is eager to reclaim his status as an all-action all-rounder.

Stokes has never revealed the precise diagnosis of his knee injury, but chronic tendonitis is thought to be possible.

“When we go to those meetings we generally take a physio and doctor and they start talking, using language I’ve never heard before,” Stokes added. “I just turn up, go to sleep, wake up and hope it is better.

“I’ll switch off and let Andy Williams, the surgeon, do what he does best which is fix knees.”

He was more forthcoming about his use of an inhaler during training sessions in India, revealing it was down to “exercise induced asthma” and not directly linked to high pollution levels in the country.

Turning his attention to matters at hand, Stokes had a blunt assessment of England’s dire showing at the World Cup – a competition which drew him back in after a year away from ODIs – but has not lived up to expectations.

“I think the problem is that we’ve been crap, to be honest with you,” he said.

“We’ve had a disastrous World Cup and there’s no point sugarcoating that because it’s the truth. We have been crap. Everything we’ve tried throughout this World Cup, it’s just not worked.

“We know that as individuals and as a team, I think that’s where it is as a team, we’ve been nowhere near good enough to be able to compete in a World Cup.

“I think the biggest thing that we’ve got to play for is the pride of what it is to put the three lions on your chest.

“England and Australia in any sport, whenever the two nations come together and play against each other, it’s always a big occasion.”

Stokes went on a six-hitting rampage as he set out for apparent retribution in the aftermath of Alex Carey’s highly divisive stumping of Bairstow, hammering his way to a jaw-dropping hundred.

By the time the lunch interval intervened, England needed another 128 runs on 243 for six, with Stokes looking imperious on 108 not out.

The home of cricket, renowned as one of the most polite sporting arenas in the world, erupted in a chorus of boos and chants of “same old Aussies, always cheating” after Bairstow was given out in bizarre circumstances at a pivotal point in the game.

England were 193 for five chasing 371 when Bairstow ducked under a bouncer from Cameron Green, tapped the crease and began to walk down to prod the pitch.

Australia wicketkeeper Carey sent an under-arm throw in after catching the ball, leaping for joy as he hit the stumps. There was confusion in the middle, Bairstow seemingly believing the ball was dead at the end of the over but Australia were happy to proceed with a deeply divisive appeal.

The umpires sent the decision upstairs for review by TV umpire Marais Erasmus, who had no option but to confirm Bairstow’s dismissal.

The Yorkshireman reluctantly stomped off to the pavilion as a crowd of almost 32,000 – taking advantage of reduced £25 tickets – poured out their anger on the touring team.

A bitter row about the ‘spirit of cricket’ will surely follow, while Bairstow’s lack of attention to detail is also liable to receive plenty of attention.

Stuart Broad threw himself into the row, seemingly picked up on stump microphone telling Carey he would be remembered forever for his actions, and later making an ostentatious show of grounding his bat behind the line at the end of an over.

But Stokes was the man at the centre of the storm. He was on 62 not out at the time, playing with notable maturity, but suddenly began a frenzied display of furious hitting with 46 runs off his next 21 deliveries.

He pulled Green for three muscular boundaries in his next over, then sent a rocket straight back at Pat Cummins, who could not hang on – attracting a few more words from Broad as the Australia captain lay on the ground.

Stokes then blazed 24 off the hapless Green’s next visit, with three consecutive sixes heaved into the on-side.

The session ended in unbearable tension, with television cameras apparently picking up Australian players exchanging words with members in the Long Room.

Archer, one of the heroes of England's Cricket World Cup triumph last July, made an unauthorised trip home between the first and second Tests to see an unnamed person, breaking the protocols put in place for the games at bio-secure arenas.

England announced Archer would need to self-isolate for five days and could therefore not take his place in the XI when the second Test began at Old Trafford on Thursday.

The team's managing director Ashley Giles claimed "it could have been a disaster" that cost the England and Wales Cricket Board "tens of millions of pounds" as international cricket adjusts amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yet Stokes - himself no stranger to attracting headlines away from the field following a fight in Bristol in 2017 - stressed Archer will not be hung out to dry by the squad.

"I think from us as players and as England Cricket group, this is a time where our way of operating really needs to come through," said Stokes, who was later cleared of affray following the incident in Bristol.

"We really need to be there to support Jofra right now because obviously he's a big talking point.

"Obviously he is by himself because of everything else going on at the moment but it's making sure he doesn't feel like he's by himself. The worst thing we can do right now as a team is to just sort of leave him and see him in five or six days' time and then say, 'Alright'.

"Times like these for people are very, very tough and you can feel like you are all by yourself but I don't think anybody is going to allow that to happen.

"Jofra is a massive part of this group, as everybody is. If it was anybody else bar Jofra it would be the exact same way of handling it that we would do as a team.

"It's all good being there for people when things are going well but what really comes through is how you operate with someone when they need you the most."

Stokes was once again instrumental on the second day at Old Trafford, scoring 176 - his 10th Test century - as England made 469-9 declared before having West Indies 32-1 in the 14 overs before stumps.

The all-rounder made 260 alongside opener Dom Sibley, whose patient 120 might have silenced some critics following his struggles in Southampton, where he was out for a duck but went on to make a second-innings half-century.

"It's great signs for us going forward that all the noise around him after Southampton literally hasn't affected him whatsoever," Stokes added.

"It's a great way to respond to any criticism that there was by going out and banging 100."