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Updated March 21st, 2021 at 23:07 IST

'Hasn't done enough': After Pietersen, Nasser Hussain escalates scrutiny around Ben Stokes

Despite Stokes' valiant fifty in the fourth T20I, Hussain said that the all-rounder has landed in a 'grey area' and has not done anything yet in the T20Is

Reported by: Jitesh Vachhatani
Nasser Hussain
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Coming down heavily on Ben Stokes in the aftermath of the series loss against India, former skipper Nasser Hussain has said that England's star all-rounder needs to step up in T20s. Despite Stokes' valiant fifty in the fourth T20I, Hussain said that the all-rounder has landed in a 'grey area' and has not done anything yet in the international T20s. With the T20 World Cup in hindsight, the former English skipper also hinted that there is a possibility that Dawid Malan might lose out his spot to Stokes, adding that it is a 'big call' to make. 

"The one lad that is a bit of grey area is Ben Stokes. First of all, you cannot give Stokes an excuse, at the moment he has not transferred any of his other form, his Test match form, white-ball form away from the international T20, but he has not done it yet anything in international T20s," Hussain told Sky Sports.

Pointing out at the upcoming T20 World Cup which is set to be held in India, Hussain opined that England has a 'gun' batting lineup. This comes after England match India's toes in the 5-match T20 series but failed to cross the line. Skipper Eoin Morgan has attributed the series loss to the underfire middle-order. While Stokes had his moment in the fourth T20, Malan fired in the fifth and final game - when England needed it the most. However, both the batsmen failed to take England past the finishing line. 

"With the IPL, there will be areas where Ben Stokes will be better than a lot of players there. Now, the debate is that England has a gun batting lineup, Dawid Malan is the number one ranked T20 batsman in the world, that's a fact. So should Ben Stokes who has not done anything in T20 international cricket take over from someone who has done something in international T20s, that's a big call to make," he added.

Difficult calls for Morgan to make, but we know Eoin Morgan if he has to make some difficult decisions, he will make them even on the eve of the tournament. He will be ruthless, but it is about can they find a role for Stokes or they stick with guys they have got," said Hussain.

England wasting Stokes: Pietersen

After the series defeat, Kevin Pietersen took to his Twitter handle and slammed the idea of sending Ben Stokes at number 6 position. He also criticised the idea of sending Jonny Bairstow at number 4. It is to be noted that Ben Stokes who arrived in the later half of the IPL 2020 opened for Rajashthan Royals. In his 8 innings, Ben Stokes showcased his spectacular batting skills scoring 285 runs at an amazing average of 40.71. Stokes played an explosive knock of 107 against the Mumbai Indians. On the other hand, Jonny Bairstow opens for Sunrisers Hyderabad. 

Team India clinch series 3-2

Coming back from 2-1, Team India went on to win the T20I series against England on Saturday with a 36-run victory in the final game. For the finale, the hosts made some changes to the batting order by promoting Virat Kohli up the order to open alongside Rohit Sharma as KL Rahul's lean patch continued. The move reaped benefits as the duo set the tone for the innings with a fiery partnership in which skipper Kohli played the second-fiddle. Handful knocks from Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya helped India post a target of 225. 

Despite losing Jason Roy in the first over, England were off to a good start with Jos Buttler and Dawid Malan notching up half-centuries. However, a stellar show from Bhuvaneshwar Kumar helped India crawl back into the game as Shardul Thakur also bagged two key wickets. India have now arrived in Pune and will lock horns with England in a 3-match ODI series. 

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Published March 21st, 2021 at 23:07 IST

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