• Reporter 12
• 31 Jul, 2025

Five overs, in case you're wondering.

There have been five overs of actual cricket in the time we've had a row about shaking hands, a Royal Rumble on the Oval square and a national state of emergency over another part of Ben Stokes' anatomy.

If two of those incidents are little more than storms in teacups, one is anything but. Of all the possible combinations England could have fielded for the decisive final Test against India from Thursday, the absence of Stokes did not feature high on the list of probabilities.

The announcement of the team on Wednesday was a jaw-dropping moment, mainly for the stark reality of what a Stokesless England team looks like.

The stakes are high here – a first series win against India since 2018 and first in a five-Test series against anyone in the same timeframe are up for grabs – and will be even higher in England's following Test, in Perth in November.

If it is an unthinkable blow to lose their talisman for this game, it also leaves England peering into their worst nightmare: taking on Australia in Australia without Ben Stokes. Depending how that series goes, there is an outside chance he has played his last Test in this country.

Once again, Stokes has pushed himself beyond his limit. In 2021 it was surger