“He’ll go down as a great England captain” – Michael Atherton ahead of Ben Stokes’ 100th Test 

Former England captain Michael Atherton has reserved special praise for reigning skipper Ben Stokes ahead of the latter’s 100th Test in Rajkot, starting on Thursday (February 15). The 55-year-old lauded Stokes for the ‘incredible turnaround' for England in Tests, with the side having lost 16 out of 17 Tests before he took charge.

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that Stokes has got the best out of the same set of players, which makes him stand out from the rest. He believes that the all-rounder will go down as one of the greatest captains to lead the Three Lions.

Speaking about Ben Stokes, Michael Atherton told Sky Sports on the eve of the third Test of the ongoing series against India:

“In the last phase of his career, he’s been dominated by his captaincy and I think he’ll go down as a great England captain for what he’s done with the team so far."

He continued:

"Having turned around a team that normally they had only won once in 17 to where they are now is an incredible turnaround with pretty much the same group of players, or one or two different but not that many. So, that’s one more chapter that he’s in the middle of writing at the moment.”

Atherton further picked his favorite moment of Stokes’ Test career so far. He reckons that the majority will remember him for his match-winning performance in Headingley in the 2019 Ashes, where he scored 135* off 219 balls against Australia:

“He’s undeniably a great cricketer for England, no question about that. With bat and ball, you can think of so many moments, just looking at that catch of Stuart Broad at Trent Bridge, which brought back some memories and that one which I was commentating, normally switch-hit Nathan Lyon and that incident in Western Terrace."

The England legend added:

"I think that’s the innings everybody would remember him for Headingley in the Ashes. So many to choose from."

As captain, Ben Stokes has led England to 14 wins in 21 Tests at a win percentage of 70 so far. Joe Root currently holds the record for most Test wins for England, with 27 victories in 64 Tests.

With the bat, Stokes has amassed 6251 runs in 99 Tests at an average of 36.34, including 13 centuries. The left-handed batter has scored 134 runs in two Tests against India in the ongoing five-match series so far. Overall, he has made 907 runs in 18 Tests against India, hitting one century and five fifties.

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“That will help him and England’s balance in the side” – Michael Atherton wants Ben Stokes to start contributing with the ball

Michael Atherton has also backed Ben Stokes to return as a pure all-rounder to add to England’s balance in Tests. On this, he said:

“He's got a bit to go, doing a bit of bowling on this tour in practice. So, he’s trying to get back to being the all-rounder that he was because, in the last year or so, he’s been essentially playing as a captain, with the bowling not part of his armory."

Atherton added:

"But, he’s trying to get back to that and if he can and just get a few more years out being an all-rounder cricketer again, that will help him and England’s balance in the side but he’s been a great cricketer. Fantastic to watch and appreciate.”

Ben Stokes didn’t bowl in the first two Tests against India despite recovering from his knee injury. The medium pacer hasn’t bowled in Tests since the second Ashes Test against Australia in Lord’s last year. Overall, he has bagged 197 wickets in 99 Tests.