England batsmen fumble initiative and fall short again

Presented with the first look at the best pitch of the series in Ahmedabad, England again failed to deliver with the bat, writes Vithushan Ehantharajah

England batsman Ben Stokes (AP)

England have once again been left lamenting their batting efforts after they were dismissed for 205 on day one of the fourth Test.

Allrounder Ben Stokes was the standout batsman, scoring 55 as the tourists fumbled the initiative in Ahmedabad. After winning the toss and going first on one of the best batting pitches produced this series, they were unable to seize control of a match they must win to prevent India from clinching the series and a spot in the World Test Championship Final.

This was far from the sharp-turning surface that saw the hosts triumph by 10 wickets last week. Nevertheless, Axar Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin combined once more to snare seven between them, preying on some lapses in concentration and application from an England line-up who succumbed to demons on a pitch that did not have any.

“I think we'll look back on that be disappointed by some of the batting,” said Stokes. “We're more than capable of scoring more than 300 on a wicket like that out here.

“We sit down as a group and say we'll try to put it behind us but it is easier said than done. I know, overall, it's a much better wicket than the last one we played on so we're just disappointed not to still be batting.”

Of further concern is Stokes’s ability to fulfil his role as one of the two seamers alongside James Anderson as England recalled Dom Bess to go with two frontline spinners. A stomach bug meant he could only bowl two overs so far before leaving the field. When asked if he would be able to play a full part in the match, he was disconcertingly vague.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I'll just have to wait and see, day-by-day."

Though they were buoyed by the late dismissal of Shubman Gill meaning India will resume day two on 24 for one in reply, England will be demoralised by yet another failure with the bat, even with Dan Lawrence drafted in for extra support. Without his 46 from number seven, this could have been uglier.

Stokes held particular contempt for his own demise. Having set himself up to carry the innings with a 24th half-century to take the team to 121 for four, he was trapped leg before by a delivery from Washington Sundar that skidded onto him from around the wicket.

“I managed to get myself in on the wicket and get out,” he said. “Fifties are never going to win you a Test match so I was very disappointed to get in on that wicket, start feeling comfortable and then get out in the way I did, especially because I’d spent two-and-a-half hours protecting myself from the ball that skids on and I ended up getting out to the ball that skids on. I was very frustrated with myself.”

Whatever India manage in their first innings, there is one more chance for England’s batsmen to redeem themselves. That will require some immense personal strength from all involved considering how things have gone over the last month. Stokes’s half-century, his second, means only three players not called Joe Root have made it past 50 in this series.

But as vice-captain, Stokes took the opportunity to offer context to his more inexperienced teammates. He also defended the approach of opener Zak Crawley in particular, who was caught at mid off trying to hit Axar Patel over the top.

“As batsmen you have to take risks to score runs. That’s how Zak chose to go about it today and you can’t hold that against him. He had the backing of the dressing room. Because he’s hit one in the air early on, are we going to pull him into the room and say never hit one in the air again? No.

“I’ve played 70 odd games and I’ve told others in the team that this is the hardest conditions I’ve faced as a batsman, and I’ve played all around the world. It’s a case of finding it your own way. It’s not about coming together as a group and saying this is what we need to do next, it’s about how can we go away as individuals and when we come back here next time, have we progressed as an individual and a group of batsmen.”