Had a feeling Archer would do something special, crack game open: Stokes

London: After captaining England to a stunning win over India in an engrossing Test match at the Lord’s, skipper Ben Stokes commented that he sensed Jofra Archer would do something special and win the game for the hosts.

"Part of the reason why I went with Archer this morning was (because of today being six years to the day since England's World Cup win at the Lord's). Jof played a big role in that, and I just had one of those feelings that he would do something special. He cracked the game open with his wickets."

"I had this gut feeling something was going to happen. Sometimes your gut works, I guess. It is awesome to have him back. Every time it gets announced on the tannoy that he is coming on to bowl, the ground erupts."

"When he turns it on, starts running in, and the speeds come up, the feeling in the game just changes. It was an amazing effort from him. I'm sure it was a tough week for him, but, sheesh, he got some crucial wickets for us. It's great to have him back," said Stokes in the post-match presentation ceremony.

Stokes was named Player of the Match for his monumental spells of 2-63 and 3-48, apart from knocks of 44 and 33, apart from inflicting a match-defining run out of Rishabh Pant. On day five, while bowling a staggering 24 overs, he claimed the huge wicket of KL Rahul before getting rid of Jasprit Bumrah. IANS

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