While their commander observed, Brook, Woakes, and Wood performed Headingley’s labor-intensive tasks.
Being the best in a field where what you do and, perhaps more significantly, how you do it offers so much delight to others comes with an inherent sadness. You won’t ever be able to see the power you possess, even though you will be aware of it.
Ben Stokes. A chase that had stalled after Stokes’s “The Saviour” and Jonny Bairstow’s “The Redeemer”
The first few seconds of “At Last”‘s opening notes certainly caused the hairs on Etta James’ neck to stand up more than they did on ours. Steph Curry will never wholly understand the anticipation we experience as the best shooter in NBA history reaches the midway line, and the defense backs off, giving him space to draw up and turn out the lights. Curb Your Enthusiasm isn’t even considered Larry David’s best work. Ben Stokes, however, was given the chance to witness an incredible Headingley heist on day four of the third Test. Whether you are a teammate, a fan, or a member of the sporting public that tunes in for these box office moments, by this point, you will have developed your coping mechanisms to deal with Stokes’ numerous varieties of insanity. Comparable to when the Ashes are at stake in a chase that intensifies with each over. The difference this time was that England defeated Australia, bringing the score to 2-1 with two outs left, and Stokes was nowhere to be seen.
That’s not accurate, though. He was there, hating every second of it, on the balcony in front of the England dressing room. Finally, there is some shared emotion between a punter and a physically different player. We finally got to observe his coping methods since he was exposed without being the center of attention and locked in without involvement. More often than while he was bowling, he scowled. Doodling or wearing down the floor in the home dressing room were ways to release nervous energy. He estimated that during the last 30 minutes of the pursuit, he had covered around 2 miles. He probably completed that task faster than most people could. In his presser, he admitted, “I didn’t witness the last 20 runs being scored. The world becomes very different when you cannot change the game’s outcome and are left only to watch and wait for your desired outcome.
He now understands. Even while the exploits are extraordinary, the ride itself is excruciating. As the runs decline and the wickets sporadically rise, peaks and troughs force you to confront the extremes of the spectrum. Is England winning? British victory? The Ashes, have they died? Why do we harm ourselves like this? Why do I abuse myself like this? Why do people even do this? Stokes detested having to experience all of that from the opposing perspective. But there’s something that people like Stokes, Etta, and Steph get to experience that we ordinary mortals don’t, something much more significant. The honor of infusing people with such excitement and leaving them with lasting memories for which they will never thank you. This makes up for it even without watching someone shoot a three-pointer from an incredible range of hearing your tunes for the first time.
But there was Stokes, enjoying a rare Sunday off, watching as three players under his supervision strapped the team to their backs and performed like he had in Test matches and World Cup finals where the entire world was watching. In this situation, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes, and Harry Brook experienced what it felt like to be Ben Stokes. A chase that had stalled after Stokes’s “The Saviour” and Jonny Bairstow’s “The Redeemer” had been dismissed to ostensibly temper England’s headline story was rebuilt by Brook, 75, who is mature beyond his years. Wood completed the game and his Player-of-the-Match performance with 16-run innings, bringing his total contributions to 40 off 16 at the plate and 7 for 100 with the ball. After a knee injury prevented him from playing cricket last summer, Woakes believed that days like these were beyond him. However, he scored an undefeated 32 to open a new chapter in his Test career. Soon after the game, he told Sky Sports, “It gave me a little sense of how Stokesy felt at Headingley four years ago.”
Each occasion had threads of consolation, atonement, and straightforward score-settling. Brook became the first player to play 1000 Test runs (on deliveries faced) in front of his home crowd while having never played an international at his home stadium. Woakes, frequently cast in Stokes’ shadow, took center stage. After jokingly expressing interest in playing Jack Leach in a prospective 2019 remake, he stepped up to take on the part of Him. Because it has meant going out in the middle when the opposition wins, Wood has long disliked batting so low. This time, he did not have to display grace in the loss. This victory’s broader perspective fuels the entire team. The XI was chosen to compensate for Stokes’ lack of bowling expertise. The way Woakes and Wood emerged, especially in Australia’s second innings when they combined for 35 of the 67.1 overs due to Ollie Robinson’s back spasm and combined for 5 for 134, revealed a vision that was still obvious behind closed doors. Even as seasoned competitors, entering a chilly series and impacting each day’s play highlights how they have been managed leading up to this contest. Of course, Stokes is to blame for a lot of that. And Brook is the best example of that. The 24-year-old had a shaky series, arriving in Leeds with an average of 33 over both innings before playing a wary No. 3 as a fill-in. Choosing him to fill in for the injured Ollie Pope said more about the team’s desire to protect Joe Root at position four than it did about their belief that a hitter with a dismal track record at the top of the order may have something to offer. But it was apparent that Brook had received more attention leading up to day four. For the second innings, Moeen Ali offered to bat at No. 3, which was seen as an opportunity to target Australia’s bowlers. Moeen scored 5 goals off of 15, so it didn’t work, but it gave Brook a better view of what needed to be done. His assignment was apparent when he stepped to the crease in the 20th over with 158 runs left to get. Even if he could not see it, the fact that he nearly wholly destroyed what was left of his initiative revealed a guy who thrived on the idea that he was the only one with the solutions. He was the solution.
It came as a surprise when Brook left, leaving 21 to go. However, what a rollercoaster that ended up being. Woakes found a method to cope despite being surrounded by bouncers because he had been dismissed 10 times by Australian quicks in that way. It, at times, resembled a man using a can of Lynx and a lighter to exterminate a hornet’s nest. By the end, he was swaying and ducking like Floyd Mayweather at his peak, and even when a couple of shots flew up just over fielders’ heads or were top-edged “safely” into the deep, you mistakenly thought he had everything under control. He had gained their confidence. Then Wood entered, threatening to pull down the entire set like Mr. Blobby on daytime television. After the Australia skipper came himself on and went short from outside the wicket, Wood further cemented his appeal in English hearts with a calming six off Pat Cummins. When compared to four years earlier, the ground noise was deafening. The boundary pop in particular situations during chases is remarkable because of how much it favors the batting side and how much it mocks the bowling one. The entire joint threatened to take off and head straight to town as Wood moved aside to drill a Starc delivery handled for his stumps through the covers. Being present for the conclusion will strengthen the bond between Woakes and Wood, who are great friends. It keeps Brook closer to the people fortunate enough to be here since he played such a significant role with a career-best in England at a venue where so many of his early lessons came from. And the three of them have something they can constantly relive together. They assume most of the responsibility, gain trust via your efforts, and push the limits to energize the crowd. Even though everything seemed so familiar, the guy who usually gets involved sat back and observed. But more crucially, Stokes wasn’t burdened, which allowed England to utilize his finest qualities. This realization is crucial as they prepare to begin the most Stokes-ian turnarounds in an Ashes series.
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