Ben Stokes welcomes England’s ‘selection nightmare’
Ben Stokes faces a “selection nightmare” for this year’s Ashes after becoming the fastest England captain with 10 wins in the Test.
A 267-run win over New Zealand in the first Test at Mount Maunganui over the weekend, England’s first in the country in 15 years, sets the stage for this week’s second Test at Wellington. In contrast, Australia suffered another lackluster defeat in India, trailing 2-0 in the series.
Ben Stokes celebrates the wicket of Devon Conway with Ollie Robinson on day two of the first Test at the Bay Oval.Credit:Getty Images
Stokes confirmed he would select an unchanged team for the second Test if all players are fit. Looking to the Ashes, he will have more difficult selection headaches with Jonny Bairstow, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood all available.
“It’s great to have so many world-class players to choose from,” he said. “It will probably end in a selection nightmare, but I’d rather have that to myself as captain and Baz [Brendon McCullum] as a coach.
“I don’t like to look too far ahead, but I think we’ll have a good selection of players in the Ashes.”
Pat Cummins’ men are struggling in India as England’s remarkable resurgence progresses at a brisk pace.Credit:Getty Images
Stokes said he feels “lucky” to be captaining this England team because the players have embraced his ideas.
“If you look at captain’s records, that’s just a small part of it. There are 10 other people that have to go out and do a job for you to win,” he said.
“I am very happy to lead this team. It’s not just my captaincy and my ideas that allow us to play this way, you also have to have the players behind you to follow you out there.”
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/why-selection-nightmare-is-an-ashes-dream-for-stokes-20230220-p5cltb.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_sport Ben Stokes welcomes England’s ‘selection nightmare’
