India v England: 'Bazball doesn't need to be debated after every Test'
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India v England: Ben Stokes says England will adapt to Ranchi pitch
It is not advisable to play cards against Ben Stokes.
After the bluff of not playing in a World Cup that he played in, he is now not ruling out bowling on the tour of India, having been convincing when he initially said he wouldn't.
The timing of Stokes potentially becoming an all-action all-rounder for the fourth Test in Ranchi could not be better, given the shellacking England took in the third Test. The last and only time they were beaten by more than that 434-run margin, Don Bradman made a double century.
The rout in Rajkot supercharged the debate around the way England play their cricket, a conversation that seems to follow every defeat.
No doubt they were awful, with the last two days probably the worst they have played since Stokes took over as captain. But some of the outrage has been disproportionate, without the memory of where England were less than two years ago.
Being 2-1 down after three Tests in India would have been a scoreline with merit at the start of the series, albeit if back then we did not know how depleted India would be, or about the chances England had to be 3-0 up. On the subject on depletion, it is worth remembering the lack of Harry Brook and Jack Leach.
It is possible to be a huge fan of England's approach and also demand more on the occasions when they could and should have done better.
Not every Test has to put Bazball on trial. If we are asking England to play in a drastically different fashion, then we are asking for a different captain and coach.
There are obvious areas of improvement. Jonny Bairstow needs a score to ensure he plays his 100th Test in Dharamsala next month. The batting unit needs to sense the opportunity to grab a Test by the scruff of the neck.
In Rajkot, the 875 runs India scored was the most England had conceded in a Test for 70 years, not helped by dropped catches and a use of the DRS system that lurches from too eager to not at all.
Most out of sorts has been Joe Root, who has become the personification of the Bazball debate. A run of six innings without a half-century is the longest since the tail end of his captaincy, stooping to a nadir with his reverse scoop at Jasprit Bumrah in the first innings in Rajkot.
Along with the need for runs and to rediscover his identity, Root is tied up in an England rhetoric that is becoming an increasing source of frustration for some.
Earlier this week, coach Brendon McCullum said of Root: "Do we want just a normal Joe Root, or do we want a Joe Root that is even better?"
McCullum is a fine speaker who commands respect. But even for him, a suggestion one of England's finest batters could become better with a more aggressive approach feels like a stretch.
Stokes was singled out for a comment after Rajkot when he said, "3-2, like the Ashes," while Ben Duckett's "the more the better" in reference to a chase was widely ridiculed.
On both occasions, I happened to be the journalist asking the questions. My impression was Stokes was referring to the situation England were in during the Ashes, rather than the outcome, while Duckett's tongue was firmly in his cheek.
India v England: Stokes bowls in nets before fourth Test
It is admirable for England to aim for absolute positivity. Athletes can often be wracked with self-doubt, so it seems reasonable logic to do everything possible to eliminate that.
The hope is there is room for honesty behind closed doors, that Stokes and McCullum are not such big personalities they cannot be challenged if an opposing view exists.
Ultimately, the Ned Flanders approach to life might be suited to this group of players, even if it rubs some up the wrong way.
When McCullum says, "You have got one crack at life so you may as well enjoy yourself, there's lots of people who see the grey sky not the blue," some might think he is talking complete guff, while others might want to frame his words and hang them in the kitchen.
In Ranchi, the land of MS Dhoni, any England panic about the pitch seems to have calmed. Chat of bringing in Dan Lawrence to lengthen the batting has given way to the balanced selection of two seamers and two spinners.
England must win to force a deciding fifth Test and avoid defeat to preserve an unbeaten series record under Stokes. In theory, India resting Bumrah gives England a better chance, but the hosts have missed key players throughout and a generation of new stars have turned things around from 1-0 down.
Ranchi, smallish by Indian standards, is full to the brim, and some journalists have been slung out of their hotels.
England have remained relaxed despite being in the goldfish bowl. Ollie Pope and Gus Atkinson play darts, though neither are good enough to beat James Anderson. There have been movie nights and a definite theme running through Old School, Step Brothers and Austin Powers; early-2000s university hall of residence.
The main pastime is a thriving card school and the game 500, which Stokes and Mark Wood played as youngsters at Durham. According to Stokes, he and Zak Crawley are the men to beat.
It is not advisable to play cards against Ben Stokes. Regardless of what happened in Rajkot, Stokes and his team will remain all in for Ranchi.