Published: Aug 03, 2017, 04:29 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 03, 2017, 04:29 PM (IST)
After his heroics earned England an unassailable 2-1 lead in the ongoing four-Test series against South Africa, Ben Stokes has been in the news for all the right reasons. England’s Test vice-captain and flamboyant all-rounder has carried his form since IPL 10 and has contributed in both the Champions Trophy and the South Africa series. An impressed Andrew Flintoff hailed Stokes, mentioning that he rated Stokes better than Ian Botham and himself. Flintoff also believes the current English Test side can be the best and retain the 2017 Ashes Down Under. He further cautioned Stokes to be careful of not running after captaincy as it can take a toll on him.
“I genuinely don’t think there is a comparison. He’s better than me. I’m not being humble here or playing myself down. I was decent, yes. But Ben can be another level. He needs to set his sights higher. Don’t call him an all-rounder, for a start. He’s better than that! I always thought being an all-rounder suggested you can do a bit of everything but you’re not a master of any of it. Ben Stokes can bat. He’s a batter. We look for this mythical all-rounder in our country, a player who is Superman. And then when he’s not, we like to pick faults. Stokes is more than that. He could bat at three for England. He could be the best pick at No 3 for any country in the world. He can be another Joe Root. He’s a proper batsman. You see his technique, shot selection, aggression. Oh, he can bowl too. We’ve seen that. Ask the South Africans. Trust me, he’s better than me, better than Ian Botham too. Beefy was a hero of mine, but Stokes is a better cricketer. Better than all of us”, Flintoff was quoted as saying by Daily Mail.
Stuart Broad also spoke about Stokes’ presence in the side and how he is like Flintoff. “Ben had the wind behind him and his bouncer that hurt Dean Elgar really fired him up. I was fielding at mid-on and it felt quick. It felt like one of those intimidating spells Flintoff used to bowl, heavy and at the batsman. He dragged the team with him”, Broad said when asked about Stokes’ ferocious spell in the final innings of the third Test.
Flintoff also went ahead and stated that the current English side have the potential to become the best in the world. “People won’t agree with this because we like to talk down our teams, but this can be the best England team of all time. Think about it: we’ve got the best batsman ever, Alastair Cook; England’s best bowler in Jimmy Anderson; the captain, Root, who can be whatever he wants to be; Broad’s figures are excellent; Jonny Bairstow at seven (No. 7) — stop talking about why he should bat up the order; Moeen Ali batting at No 8; and Stokes! England will win the Ashes this winter. I just want them to stop concentrating on what they can’t do and think about what they can.”
Flintoff signed off by cautioning Stokes to not run after the captaincy job. He stressed on the fact that it can add a lot to his already overburdened shoulder (he is an all-rounder, after all): “Stay vice-captain. Stay there. He might have aspirations to be England captain but don’t do it! I can’t speak for him, but if I am relating it to my career, I found it one job too many. I found it so hard — bowling, batting, captain. You had to go back to your room and switch off but I couldn’t. It was draining. I didn’t know when to bowl myself. I ended up ‘I’ll bowl’ or if something needed doing, ‘I’ll do it’. For him to play in the way in which he does, he doesn’t need that.
“But who knows? He keeps on amazing us. He could take over after Root’s had enough and be the best England captain ever. And I hope he does. All I am saying about that is, ‘be careful’. I want him to enjoy his cricket, as he is now,” concluded Flintoff.
