Dharamsala (AFP): England captain Ben Stokes on Friday cleaned up his Indian counterpart Rohit Sharma with the very first ball he has bowled since having knee surgery late last year.
The 32-year-old all-rounder rattled Rohit’s stumps with a delivery that seamed off the pitch, the Indian captain falling for 103 on day two of the fifth Test in Dharamsala.
Stokes, who said he would play purely as a batsman in the five-match series because of his knee, had hinted at a return to bowling ahead of the fourth Test.
The right-arm seamer took the ball after lunch and got the wicket right away, with TV commentator Sanjay Manjrekar marvelling at “a magic ball”.
Stokes has struggled with his left knee for some time, with the injury preventing him from bowling in the last three Ashes Tests in 2023 and the ODI World Cup later that year.
He underwent knee surgery in November and has been working his way back towards full fitness.
Stokes, a left-handed batsman, has scored 197 runs in the series, which the tourists have already lost after India took an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the previous match.
