Ashes 2019 Headingley, Leeds: What a year it has been for World Cup winning hero 'Ben Stokes'. Single handedly Stokes took England to a 1 wicket victory over Australia in the third Ashes Test Series.
The fast bowling flare, the batting masterclass which Andrew Flintoff once possessed the same exact can now be seen within Ben Stokes.
Probably Ben Stokes is England's MS Dhoni right now. Till the time Ben Stokes is around England have hopes of winning, and it was evident in the World Cup Final and at Leeds.
Australia would have retained the Ashes if it was not Ben Stokes with his match winning 135 as England chased down 359 in the third Ashes Test. And squared of the series with 2 tests remaining.
To deliver an innings like the one he played at Headingley, just six weeks after winning us the World Cup final, and with the Ashes on the line, is what seals it for me. I know there are past greats like Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff but we’re watching another legend in the making here. When everyone woke up on Sunday morning there was a sense that England could do something very special.
England's remarkable summer started with some genius from Stokes, a stunning one-handed catch on the boundary in their Cricket World Cup opener against South Africa.
After then playing a major hand in some Super-Over madness that saw England lift said World Cup, Stokes was again at the heart of a truly incredible win at Headingley on Sunday, one to rival not only that late Lord's drama in mid-July but anything in cricket that has come before.
Sir Ian Botham in 1981, Andrew Flintoff 2005; there can be no doubt that 2019 belongs to Stokes, no matter the eventual outcome of an Ashes series now tied at 1-1 with two Tests to play - a series saved from what seemed certain extinction when last man Jack Leach joined Stokes at the crease with 73 runs still required.
Arise, Sir Ben Stokes!
Following his Headingley heroics, the star England all-rounder is now No.2 in the @MRFWorldwide ICC Men's Test All-Rounder Rankings. pic.twitter.com/Prxm2WjFCC
— ICC (@ICC) August 27, 2019
Ben Stokes certainly reminds everyone of Andrew Flintoff, Flintoff's extraordinary 2005 Ashes memories were rekindled by Stokes. Probably two of the top all rounders England have blessed with.
Ben Stokes have kept the Ashes alive, as former England Captain Nasser Hussain rightly said after the finish "For England Ashes is still alive because of one man, Benjamin Stokes".
With the Ashes poised at 1-1 it will be a battle to watch out for in the next two test matches. Can Australia bounce back and retain the Ashes or Can England ride on the revived confidence bestowed by Stokes heroics and win the Ashes?
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 27, 2019Here's the winning moment from Headingley.
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