Stokes Bowling in Ranchi Nets: Will ENG Captain Break his ‘Pinky Promise’ After Rajkot Humiliation - WATCH

As England keep on looking to find ways to bounce back in the ongoing series, the bowling combination will be something which they will be focusing on. The last two matches saw a run fest from the hosts and coming to Rajkot, India shattered all records with a 434-run win to go up 2-1. Ahead of the fourth Test in Ranchi, the visitors are likely to tinker with their attack and to everyone’s surprise, skipper Ben Stokes was spotted rolling his arms over at the JSCA facility during the training session on Wednesday.

CricketNext has learned that the English captain bowled a few deliveries in the nets while Ollie Robinson sweated it out for a longer duration. The likes of James Anderson and Mark Wood, who featured in the third Test in Rajkot, didn’t train on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, English batter Ollie Pope addressed the pre-match press conference on Wednesday where he was questioned if Stokes would bowl in the upcoming fixture. The batter said there’s a possibility but the skipper hasn’t confirmed it himself.

“There’s definitely a chance but Ben Stokes hasn’t confirmed that he will bowl,” Pope said.

Stokes has not bowled full tilt since the second Ashes Test in July last year and underwent knee surgery after the ODI World Cup in November. Coming into the series against India, the England captain had already ruled out bowling and said he had made a ‘pinky promise’ to the team physio. However, it seems like England’s historic defeat in Rajkot has compelled him to break his vow.

As seen in a video shared by Sky Sports News on microblogging site X, Stokes had a go in the nets. It has also been learned that he had a long conversation with team doctor Glen Rae on the sidelines of the nets.

“He didn’t want to put himself under too much pressure early by saying he’s going to be bowling, so he’s played it day by day with how his knee is feeling,” Pope said at the presser.

“I think he’s been impressed by how his knee has been going. He’s had a good bowl against our batters. We know what he’s like, he’s got that competitive edge. There’s every chance he’ll bowl, but he’s not confirmed it yet,” he added.

As far as Stokes’ bowling records are concerned, the all-rounder is just 3 wickets away from achieving the feat of 200 wickets along with 6,000 runs in Test cricket and also the third cricketer to do so.