3 h. ago England call up Gus Atkinson to bolster bowling ranks after India defeat

Stokes ponders changes after bowling 234 overs‘It’s no secret that we have spent some time in the field’England have called up Gus Atkinson for Thursday’s third Test against India as they seek to refresh a bowling group that toiled through 234 overs at Edgbaston in a losing cause.Ben Stokes admitted his side’s travails on the way to a humbling 336-run defeat had left them needing to repair both their bodies and their morale, with barely 72 hours in which to do it. “We’re disappointed, but we’ve got three days to turn around, so we need to get over this one just like we got over the enjoyment and the excitement of winning the first game – we need to flip our heads around,” the England captain said. Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Ben Stokes says ‘there probably will be a decision to make’ with third Test team

Jofra Archer and Gus Atkinson could be asked to breathe new life into England’s bowling.

Politics

4 h. ago England crash to heavy India defeat that reveals Bazball flaw

Ben Stokes’ men were bowled out for 271 with 27 overs still remaining as India levelled the series at 1-1

Events

5 h. ago Ben Stokes says sloppy start led to heavy England defeat by India at Edgbaston

Stokes saw his side crumble to a mammoth 336-run loss at Edgbaston.

Politics

8 h. ago India close on victory as Ben Stokes falls on brink of lunch

Akash Deep led the way as the tourists reduced England to 153 for six in notional pursuit of 608 at Edgbaston.

Politics

26 h. ago Marcus Trescothick says England ‘not stupid enough’ to dismiss draw

The hosts are chasing a mammoth 608 to win the second Test against India.

Politics

28 h. ago England face challenge of bravado as India take total control of second Test

England closed on 72 for three, chasing a colossal 608.

Politics

50 h. ago Hothouse kid Jamie Smith starts as he goes on and changes Test in 20 minutes | Andy Bull

England’s keeper came in on a hat-trick, hit his first ball for four and never stopped battering India’s bowlersIt started in the worst possible way. By the second over of the day England were 84 for five, five hundred runs and a thousand miles behind. Their best batter, Joe Root had just been caught off the ninth ball of the morning, and their captain, Ben Stokes, who has worked so many miracles for them before, had been caught off the 10th, done by a wicked, lifting delivery, nasty, brutish and short, which brushed off his glove on its way through to the keeper.The bowler, Mohammad Siraj, was on a hat-trick, and here comes England’s No 7, Jamie Smith, 24 years old, playing his 19th Test innings. Continue reading...

Politics

52 h. ago Jamie Smith’s sensational century gives England hope but India seize their moment

Second Test, D3: India 587 and 60-1; England 407Wicketkeeper hits unbeaten 184 but India in chargePressure? What pressure? Or to pinch a line from Keith Miller, the great Australian all-rounder and a fighter pilot during second world war: “There is no pressure in Test cricket. Real pressure is when you are flying a Mosquito with a Messerschmitt up your arse.”Notwithstanding this old truism, there was still a fair bit on the line when Jamie Smith strode out to middle at 11.12am here on the third morning. Joe Root had been uncharacteristically strangled down leg, Ben Stokes had been blown away by a brutish first ball and Mohammed Siraj, a fiery fast bowler known to get on a roll, was eyeing up a hat-trick. Oh, and England were 84 for five, 503 runs behind India’s first innings. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Assistant coach Jeetan Patel admits 151 overs in field had taken toll on England

Captain Shubman Gill ground down the hosts with a superb 269.

Politics

3 d. ago England in Deep trouble on day two after Shubman Gill’s 269 piles on the pain

India 587; England 77-3Akash Deep removes both Duckett and Pope for ducksThe last time a visiting skipper in England notched up a double century was Graeme Smith in 2003 and it prompted Nasser Hussain to fall on his sword mid-series. Smith – or “what’s-his-name” as Hussain called him beforehand – was a captain killer on these shores, his South Africa team accounting for Michael Vaughan five years later.Ben Stokes at least knew Shubman Gill’s name before this series and, in fairness, the England captaincy is unlikely to change hands in the next week. Nevertheless, Gill inflicted one of the toughest days of Stokes’ three years in charge as his chanceless and downright merciless 269 from 387 balls drove India to a position of dominance. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago England cricket star calls for instant rule change after frustrations during India clash

Chris Woakes was the pick of the England attack after Ben Stokes again decided to put India in to bat, but despite picking up two wickets on his home ground, it could have been more

Politics

4 d. ago Shubman Gill digs in to steady India and hold off England’s battling bowlers

Second Test, day one: India 310-5 v EnglandGill adds second century of series as tourists rack up runsAt the end of a sluggish first day in which just 85 overs were sent down, both sides could feel happier than the slightly short-changed punters.India? They had been stuck in and responded with 310 for five courtesy of Shubman Gill’s second century of the series. England? Well, they never get too hung up by the runs column and, after last week’s win at Headingley, no one was claiming to be staggered at Ben Stokes bowling first. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Shubman Gill digs in for a ton to steady India and hold off England’s battling bowlers

Second Test, day one: India 310-5 v EnglandGill adds second century of series as tourists rack up runsAt the end of a hard-fought opening day in which just 85 overs were bowled, both sides were happier than some of the punters heard growling about the delays on the way out.India? They had been stuck in and reached 310 for five by stumps courtesy of Shubman Gill’s second century of the series. England? They never get too hung up about the runs column and after a victory at Headingley that saw them claim just three wickets on day one, no one could claim to be staggered by Ben Stokes opting to bowl first. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Shubman Gill halts England’s opening day progress at Edgbaston

The tourists closed on 310 for five having been put into bat by Ben Stokes

Politics

4 d. ago Yashasvi Jaiswal puts India in strong position despite missing out on century

The India opener looked on course for a fourth Test century before England captain Ben Stokes struck just before tea.

Events

4 d. ago Poorly led, strategically inept and shorn of democracy. Now I truly fear for this Labour government | John McDonnell

The welfare bill passed, but it was chaos. A party this dysfunctional and divided cannot escape the wrath of voters at the next electionThe welfare bill has gone through, but what is on the minds of most Labour MPs and supporters is how did we get into this appalling mess over disability benefits? A key factor has been the immense lack of judgment of the party’s real decision-makers, the team in the leader’s office, fuelled by their overweening arrogance. The egos of the young men cloistering Keir Starmer have clearly been inflated by the multitude of articles written by sycophantic commentators desperate to secure access to the new regime.However, the seeds of this debacle were sowed by the Treasury’s capture of the incoming government, enabling officials to bring back the same old austerity agenda of benefit cuts that they developed for George Osborne.John McDonnell is the independent MP for Hayes and Harlington. He was shadow chancellor for Labour from 2015 to 2020 Continue readi...

Politics

5 d. ago Talisman Stokes at Edgbaston evokes Flintoff’s 2005 impact – but he is due a score

England team hang on their captain’s every word but he is on his longest run of Tests without a centuryA day out from the second Test against India at Edgbaston and Andrew Flintoff was dog-sticking to England’s batters in the nets, his very presence bringing memories of 20 years ago flooding back. It was here where Flintoff wrote his name into Ashes folklore, igniting the afterburners for England’s statement first innings, rescuing the second with a six-laden counterattack, and then sending down a famous over on the third evening that vaporised Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting.As well as driving England to that famous two-run victory, 141 runs and seven wickets across the four days made it Flintoff’s statistical peak as a fast-bowling all-rounder – the only time he went north of 100 runs and five wickets in the same Test. People often underestimate the physical and mental demands that the dual role places on those hardy enough to even attempt it; expecting both facets of their game t...

Politics

5 d. ago Ben Stokes explains Freddie Flintoff's guest starring role in England vs India series

England and India will lock horns in the second test of the series at Edgbaston starting on Wedneday, and England skipper Ben Stokes is welcoming Andrew Flintoff to the fold

Events

5 d. ago Ben Stokes ‘a shadow of normal self’ after Headingley but now ready to go again

The second Test gets under way in Birmingham on Wednesday.

Politics