India v England: Ben Stokes says his side will stick with their approach
- Published
Ben Stokes defends Joe Root's dismissal after heavy third-Test loss to India
Captain Ben Stokes says England do not need to change their method despite crumbling to a 434-run defeat by India in the third Test in Rajkot.
England lost eight wickets for 95 runs in their first innings, then were bowled out for 122 in their second.
"Our batting line-up is full of international-class players, we give them the freedom to play what's in front of them," said Stokes.
"It's disappointing, but we'll leave it behind us and move on to the next one."
Under Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, England had won 14 of their previous 20 Tests, often thanks to their aggressive, swashbuckling batting.
But they unravelled in Rajkot, wasting an excellent opportunity and allowing India to go 2-1 up in the series.
On the third morning, they had reached 224-2 in reply to India's 445. The hosts were without off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who had left the match because of a family emergency.
But England fell apart, their collapse sparked by Joe Root being caught at second slip trying to reverse scoop pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah.
Given a lead of 126, India posted 430-4 declared in their second innings to set England a fanciful 557 for victory.
The tourists were blown away in less than 40 overs on the fourth day to suffer their biggest defeat in terms of runs since 1934 and hand India their largest victory ever.
"We've got the wrong end of this, but I won't look back with any regrets," Stokes, who was playing in his 100th Test, told BBC Sport.
"We did it with our best intentions and sometimes your execution isn't how you want it to be. It can be your downfall, but so be it.
"We're disappointed with the performance, but it's what we do next that counts."
England now must avoid defeat in the fourth Test in Ranchi, beginning on Friday, to keep the series alive. They still have the opportunity to fight back and become the first visiting team to win a Test series in this country since 2012.
"Yeah, 3-2 sounds good," said Stokes. "Games are lost in the head, so we need to park this. If we carry anything from this week we're already going into next week with a disadvantage.
"I mentioned in the dressing room to make sure all the emotion and disappointment is left in there and all the focus goes into the fourth Test."
Ben Stokes' dismissal was part of a sequence where England lost three wickets without adding a run
All-rounder Stokes has not bowled so far in this series after having surgery on a long-standing left-knee issue in November.
He has been bowling in training, in the hope he will be able to bowl competitively in the home summer. Stokes said before the third Test he had made a "pinky promise" to the England medical staff not to rush back to bowling.
However, the 32-year-old has now revealed he has been bowling at "100%" in practice and has not ruled out bowling in a match before the series is out.
"I'm not saying yes, I'm not saying no. I have progressed a lot faster than I thought I would," said Stokes.
"I'm always very optimistic about most things. That will be a more detailed chat with the medical team about what workload I have to do to pass me off as not being a massive risk.
"I managed to bowl at 100% in one of the warm-up days here, which made me feel pretty good. I felt like I could have bowled in the game but that would have been stupid. It's a work in progress."
India have now won two successive Tests after being beaten in the series opener in Hyderabad.
They played more than a day of the third Test without Ashwin, who left the match on the second evening and did not return until after tea on the fourth day.
"When you lose your most experienced bowler, especially in the middle of a Test match, it is not easy," said captain Rohit Sharma.
"Everything aside, family comes first. When we heard the news, there was no second thought in our mind. He wanted to be with the family, which is the absolutely right thing to do.
"Good on him to come here and be part of the team on this day. It shows the character and the kind of person he is, wanting to put everything ahead for the team. We were happy to have him back."
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