England captain Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the series-deciding fifth Test against India this week.
The superstar all-rounder has enjoyed an incredible series with the ball, taking more wickets than anyone else, and has also scored one century.
However, with India still able to draw the series, Stokes won’t be involved.
The skipper has driven himself into the ground for his team, but he won’t be able to help as England hope to win the series 3-1.
Why is Ben Stokes not paying at The Oval?
The 34-year-old is set to miss the fifth Test due to a shoulder injury.
He revealed in the pre-match press conference that it was too much of a risk to play this game.
Stokes revealed he would be out for six to seven weeks, but he is adamant it will have no impact on The Ashes.
He said: “I’m very disappointed. It’s a decent tear to one of the muscles that I can’t pronounce. We took as long as we could to make the decision.
“It is one of those of weighing up the risk-reward, and the risk was way too high for damaging this any further than it currently is.
“I wouldn’t expect to put any of my players at risk with an injury like this.
“Once this series is done I was feet up anyway – it doesn’t really make too much difference to what I’ve got from the end of the series up until the winter.”
In his place, Ollie Pope will be the captain and Jacob Bethell is set to play at six.
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It’s a blow for England after Stokes delivered an incredible performance in the draw at Old Trafford.
The captain took his first five-for with the ball in eight years, finishing with figures of 5-72.
And with the bat, he scored his first century since Lord’s 2023 against Australia, slamming 141 off 198 balls.
But if England are to finish off the series and claim the win, they will have to do so without their talisman.
Who is replacing Stokes?
With the England captain missing out, Bethell gets his chance.
The 21-year-old is a talented batter and can also bowl a bit of spin, but it’s his ability with the bat in hand that has seen him rise up the ranks.
In the three Tests he’s played so far, Bethell has racked up 260 runs, leaving him an average of 52.
He has two 50s to his name and while he hasn’t hit a century yet, he came very close in the second Test against New Zealand, scoring 96 in the second innings.
England vs India: Series results and schedule
England lead Test series 2-1
- First Test – England won by five wickets (Headingley)
- Second Test – India won by 336 runs (Edgbaston)
- Third Test – England won by 22 runs (Lord’s)
- Fourth Test – Draw (Old Trafford)
- Fifth Test – July 31-August 4 (The Oval)
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He was tipped to play at number three instead of Pope from the start of this series after quotes from Stokes had suggested England would bring Bethell straight back into the team.
However, Pope got the nod and scored a century at Headingley.
He’s also dug in on several occasions and proved why he deserves his place in the team.
But with Stokes out, Bethell has a chance to build on his promising start to life in Test cricket.
Strangely, he has yet to score 100 in first-class cricket, but Stokes fully backs Bethell.
He said: “There was a lot more hype and pressure in New Zealand when he was given a chance at No 3 and he handled that pretty well.
“He gets to slide in at No 6. I’m very confident in his abilities, he’s a quality player.”
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