LONDON: Right-handed batter Ollie Pope said he will be ready to captain England in Test cricket in the upcoming home summer if Ben Stokes misses out on any of their six matches due to long-standing fitness issues.
Stokes had a long-standing left knee injury flared up during the series in New Zealand in February, which limited his ability to use his right-arm pace bowling. He also suffered niggles while being a part of the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, which limited his participation to just two matches.
“Everyone wants to see Stokesy play all six Tests so fingers crossed his body is all good and he can do that. But if it is the case (that I captain) then I feel (ready). It is a big step up from doing it in warm-up games but I have had a bit of experience with it.”
“I have been watching Stokesy fairly closely with how he goes about his captaincy. There is only one Ben Stokes. I wouldn’t try to be him but if called upon I feel confident I can relay the same messages to the guys.”
“The team has been together for a long time and guys know what their roles are in the team so it’s about relaying the messages and keeping the positive attitude,” Pope was quoted as saying by Sky Sports News. IANS
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