'Going To Be A Shame': Ben Stokes Fires Indirect Warning At Team India And Reflects On Virat Kohli's Absence From IND vs ENG Series

India vs England 1st Test: Despite everything that is going to happen in the upcoming IND vs ENG five-match Test series, not seeing Virat Kohli around in whites is going to take some time to process. Virat not playing for India in such a big series is going to test the limits of the players of the young Indian team. The spotlight firmly remains on Shubman Gill and how he is going to lead the Indian Test team on a tour that is going to be challenging in every sense.

Ben Stokes Gives His Take On Virat Kohli's Retirement

The England Test team has evolved under Ben Stokes' leadership. The inventors of cricket, England, have revolutionized Test cricket with their aggressive style of play, which is often known as 'Bazball'. With Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes at the helm of English Test cricket, one thing is very certain: things are going to be really tough for the Indian Test team.

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English Test skipper Ben Stokes spoke about Virat Kohli's retirement and the text he dropped him when he came to know about the ex-India skipper's retirement from the longest format of the game. Stokes also said that he and Virat share the same mindset and they approach the 22 yards as a battlefield.

'I did text him, saying it’s going to be a shame not to play against him because I love playing against Virat. We both love playing against each other because we have that same mindset when we are out in the field –that it’s a battle,' said Ben Stokes in a video posted on the England and Wales Cricket Board's official Instagram account. Stokes undoubtedly is a fierce competitor, and India will have to find a way to fight fire with fire.

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India Eye An End To Their Test Cricket Woes

The England series also marks the start of India's campaign in the new World Test Championship cycle. India is experiencing troubled times in red-ball cricket. They lost their last two Test series, and one of them was against New Zealand at home. After the Kiwis whitewashed India in their own backyard, Australia defeated India and knocked them out of the reckoning for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 Final.

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