World Cup 2023: Former Indian cricketer wants England to play Ben Stokes even if he's not fully fit

Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan believes England should bring all-rounder Ben Stokes into the playing XI, even if he is not fully fit, at the ongoing World Cup in India.

Pathan's remarks come after England suffered a morale-downing defeat against Afghanistan on Sunday (Oct 15) where the team sorely missed someone like Stokes to steer the ship when things went south.

"Bring in Ben Stokes even if he is 99 per centfit. You need him. You brought him for his experience. They won't have a chance to come back if they lose the next match. It won't happen every time," said Pathan.

Pathan reflected on England's 2019 WC Campaign where the team lost three games in the league stage and yet managed to emerge with the ultimate prize.

"In the 2019 World Cup, England lost three matches. They lost to Sri Lanka, Pakistan and one more match. They became the world champions despite that. So it's not that everything is over but if they get too late in playing their main team and their better bowlers, they will not be able to catch the wagon."

Stokes unretiredfor WC

The former England captain has missed all three World Cup games so far due to a hip injury. There were rumours that Stokes would start the match against Afghanistan as he was seen warming up at the Arun Jaitley Stadium but the playing XI had his name missing.

Stokes had retired from the ODI format in July last year and only came into the World Cup reckoning less than two months before the start of the marquee tournament when he unretired himself.

Despite struggling with the bowling load, Stokes can deliver a few overs in the middle if required and simultaneously play as a specialist batter. His knack for bailing the team from tricky situations is something that England desperately want, especially in the subcontinent conditions, cricket pundits argue.

On Sunday (Oct 15), a maverick Afghanistan beat world champions England by 69 runs, whilst defending a target of 285 on a flat Delhi pitch. The Afghans dominated the match from the beginning as openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran smashed English bowlers to all parts of the park.

During the chase, the Afghan spinners weaved a web around the English batters and neutralised them completely to walk away with a historic win.

(With inputs from agencies)

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