England skipper Ben Stokes can't do wrong in the ongoing fourth Manchester Test against India. The southpaw first picked up a fifer after eight years, and later went on to score a brilliant ton to almost shut the door on the visitors making a comeback in the game. However, rather than the all-rounder trending on social media, former cricketer Ravi Ashwin was trending on X.
For the unversed, the former off-spinner had questioned the England captain's ability with the bat in hand before the Manchester Test, as he had not scored a ton for almost three years. The southpaw's first century came after 35 innings. However, like he always does, the veteran player proved his critics wrong, first by making vital contributions in the Lord's Test with bat and ball, and later in the ongoing fourth Test, by making it a double of a fifer as well as scoring a ton. The all-rounder became only the fifth player in history as a captain to achieve this feat.
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Ben Stokes also joined greats Gary Sobers and Jacques Kallis as only the third all-rounder to achieve a double of 7000+ plus Test runs and 200+ wickets. Ashwin had questioned the all-rounder's impact with the bat. Post the England skipper's knock, a fan took a dig at Ashwin on X.
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"Anna (Big Brother) @ashwinravi99, this is Ben Stokes #BenStokes," the fan wrote.
Ravi Ashwin explains in a proper way to a Ben Stokes fan
To which Ashwin replied, “Arrey (Attention), sir ji, no one doubted his class! He got his first fifer after 2017; this game was a hundred after two years! This has come because of his traditional test match approach to batting and not the carefree one he had adopted before this. Ben Stokes is a fabulous player. I take my hat off to him. But we need to remember one thing. Barring that Headingley heroics in the Ashes, what has he achieved as a batter? The readiness to play a Test match in the way a Test match needs to be played—that is the problem from the leadership standpoint. You are telling every batter to go and play an attacking brand of cricket, so you need to play like that only."
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Stokes has been simply phenomenal in the ongoing five-match Test series against India, especially with the ball in hand. The all-rounder has so far picked up 16 wickets, and is the leading wicket taker in the series.