Kevin Pietersen, who used to bat for England, didn’t like how captain Ben Stokes threw away his wicket on Day 3 of the fifth Test against India at Edgbaston. Pietersen told Stokes to take a lesson from Jonny Bairstow and stop being so aggressive.
When Stokes and Jonny Bairstow came back to bat on day three, England was at 84-5, and Stokes hit three fours to put the pressure back on the visitors. The left-hander also got some breaks when Jasprit Bumrah and Shardul Thakur dropped him. But Stokes didn’t take advantage of his good luck, and Bumrah got him out in Thakur’s first over.
What did Kevin Pietersen say about Ben Stokes?
Pietersen told Sky Sports that Stokes should stop being so aggressive and let the other team’s bowlers earn his wicket. The player who has played in 104 Tests said that Stokes doesn’t always have to take the game to the other team:
Pietersen said, “I would tell Ben Stokes that he doesn’t have to be very aggressive to prove a point. Ben Stokes has such a strong presence that when he walks out to the wicket, the bowler needs to be at the top of his game to get him out. I see Ben Stokes as the captain, the leader, and someone who is trying to show his authority by running at bowlers.”
Pietersen kept going: “Ben Stokes can just stand still and do what Jonny Bairstow is doing here today. He doesn’t need to run at bowlers, lose his cool, or hit balls straight up in the air when England is in a lot of trouble.”
Within an hour of the day’s play, Stokes left for 25 and gave the tourists the lead. Jonny Bairstow had the highest score of the day with 106, but the visitors took an important lead of 132 runs.
