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England Test captain Ben Stokes praised stand-in skipper Ollie Pope for his outstanding effort leading the side in his absence. Stokes missed the last four Tests - three against Sri Lanka at home and the first Test in Pakistan, due to a hamstring injury.
He will return and lead the side in the second Pakistan Test at Multan, starting October 15.
Meanwhile, Pope captioned England admirably, winning three out of the four Tests. They defeated Sri Lanka 2-1 at home and now lead the Pakistan series 1-0 after a thumping victory by an innings and 47 runs in the opening Test.
Speaking to Sky Sports on the eve of his return to the side as captain for the second Test, Stokes credited Pope for his excellent showing as England skipper.
"For such a young player who has got quite a lot of experience now, having that exposure to being a top-order batter but also captain will be really, really good for him in the long-term and I think he has done a great job. His winning percentage is better than mine. I think - winning three out of four Tests - he has done a great job and should be very proud of what he has achieved while I have been injured," said Stokes.
He added:
"I said it before when asked about this, being stand-in captain is harder than being captain because you know you are only doing it for a certain amount of games and you are trying to still push forward what the current captain is doing. Popey has been involved under my captaincy from day one so there was a lot of easy and natural ways to continue doing that, but what he also did was put his own stamp on things which were massively encouraged by myself and Baz."
Stokes' remarks on Pope's winning percentage being higher than his holds much truth despite the vastly different sample space. Stokes has led England to 17 wins in 27 outings with a winning percentage of 62.96 compared to Pope's 75.
"There is no individual bigger than the team and I have really noticed that the 11 guys out in the field really embody that" - Ben Stokes
Ben Stokes expressed his content on the England players buying into the 'team-oriented' messaging from himself and head coach Brendon McCullum.
After struggling in the red-ball format, Stokes and McCullum changed England's approach in Tests to all-out attack mode since taking over in mid-2022.
"When you are out in the middle, there are a few things you don't get the chance to see or observe because you are thinking about other things, but when you are actually sitting on the sidelines, you realise how committed everyone out on the field is to the very small things that me and Baz (McCullum) constantly ask of everyone," said Stokes.
He added:
Running after the ball to the boundary, backing the bowlers up, all the small things that in the bigger picture mean a hell of a lot. When you get to stand back and watch it in action, you realise that what you are saying is working and is really hitting home with these guys. There is no individual bigger than the team and I have really noticed that the 11 guys out in the field really embody that.
England have lost only the lone Test series (in India earlier this year) since Stokes took over as permanent Test captain in 2022.
They will look to seal a second consecutive Test series win in Pakistan, having whitewashed them 3-0 in 2022.
