Nasser Hussain praised Ben Stokes for the clever way he got Rishabh Pant out in the Birmingham Test. Hussain thinks Stokes is the best captain England has had with spinners. He pointed out how Stokes got Pant to go for a risky shot off Shoaib Bashir and Pant was caught at long-on for 25.
I think Ben Stokes is the best captain of spin this country has seen, Hussain wrote in his Daily Mail column. The way he subtly changes the field, especially the long on and long off positions, is brilliant and it got rid of the danger man Rishabh Pant.
Hussain noticed Stokes setting up the trap for Pant while in the commentary box.
When Bashir started bowling, Stokes had Ben Duckett right behind Bashir’s arm, so Pant couldn’t hit down the ground. Even when Duckett moved wider, Pant didn’t take the bait.
The plan worked when Stokes replaced Duckett with the taller Zak Crawley. Stokes also told Crawley to stand closer to the usual long-on position for a left-hander, so Pant was unsure before he fell into the trap.
Crawley covered a lot of ground with his long reach and took a great catch.
Stokes moved Duckett about 20 yards wider, but Pant wasn’t interested. When he moved Duckett even further before tea, it seemed like Pant had the advantage and he hit a six, Hussain wrote.
Zak Crawley was quite wide then, but when England came back for the evening session, Stokes moved him slightly straighter. This made it a riskier decision for Pant to attempt that shot. Stokes didn’t tell him not to play the shot but used Crawley to tempt him.
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Hussain also praised Bashir for bowling around the middle and leg-stump, so Pant couldn’t hit to the off-side. Pant had to aim for long-on or mid-wicket, which was riskier. Hussain remembered Pant’s two hundreds in the first Test at Headingley and noted that Stokes had outsmarted him this time.
Pant seemed to control Stokes a bit during that hundred. But in this match, Stokes controlled Pant, he wrote.
