IND vs ENG 2021: “My man through thick and thin” - Ben Stokes shares special message after Joe Root’s Nottingham ton

England all-rounder Ben Stokes has lauded his captain Joe Root for his defiant century on Day 4 of the Nottingham Test against India. Root struck 109 off 172 balls as England scored 303 in their second innings to set the visitors a victory target of 209 runs.

England are missing Stokes, who pulled out of the Test series just a few days before it began, to prioritise his mental well-being. Taking to his Twitter account on Saturday, Stokes shared a video of Root celebrating his 21st Test hundred and posted:

“My man…..through thick and thin.”

He also shared a heart emoji along with the post.

Root yet again bailed England out of trouble after their top three failed. Rory Burns (18), Dom Sibley (28) and Zak Crawley (6) were undone by the Indian pacers.

The England captain occupied the crease for 284 minutes during his innings, and hit 14 boundaries. Jonny Bairstow (30) and Sam Curran (32) chipped in with decent contributions to lift the hosts past the 300-run mark. For India, Jasprit Bumrah was the standout performer with 5 for 64.

My man…..through thick and thin ❤️ https://t.co/h0stMxsFWu

— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) August 7, 2021

Needing 209 to win the first Test, India ended Day 4 at 52 for 1. First-innings hero KL Rahul was dismissed for 26.

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Joe Root had backed Ben Stokes’ decision to take a break

Speaking ahead of the Test series against India, Root threw his weight behind Stokes, backing the World Cup-winning all-rounder’s decision to pull out of the series due to mental health issues. Root said that the entire England team was behind Stokes and wished him to be well. At a press conference, Root had said:

“From my point of view, I just want my friend to be okay. Anyone who knows Ben is aware that he always puts other people in front of himself. And I think now is the opportunity for Ben Stokes to put himself first. To take time to look after himself and get himself into a good place again.”

“Hopefully that can be sooner rather than later. I think cricket has to be the secondary thought down the line. He should take as much time as he needs. He has got my full support. I am sure he has the ECB’s full support and certainly the whole team’s. More than anything, we just want Ben to be okay."

That's Stumps on Day 4⃣ of the first #ENGvIND Test!#TeamIndia move to 5⃣2⃣/1⃣ & need 1⃣5⃣7⃣ runs more to win. @ImRo45 (12*) & @cheteshwar1 (12*) will resume the proceedings on Day 5 at Trent Bridge. Scorecard 👉 https://t.co/TrX6JMzP9A pic.twitter.com/6yBQ5gAFKO

— BCCI (@BCCI) August 7, 2021

Ben Stokes suffered a finger injury during the first match of IPL 2021, and was immediately ruled out of the T20 league. He recently returned to lead an inexperienced England side to a 3-0 win over Pakistan in an ODI series, after the entire original squad was sent into isolation due to COVID-19 hitting the camp.