Tried to take it deep and cash in later: Ben Stokes

England have finally lifted themselves from the bottom spot on the points table. The Three Lions defeated the Netherlands by 160 runs in Pune on Wednesday (November 8). 

Winning the toss and opting to bat first, their batting finally stepped up. Dawid Malan scored 87 at the top. Later, Ben Stokes notched up his first World Cup hundred. Scoring an 84-ball 108, Stokes forged a 129-run stand with Chris Woakes (51) which stretched England’s score to 339/9. In a brittle response, the Dutch were bundled out for  179. 

“Absolutely desperate for the win,” said the England skipper, Jos Buttler.

“Malan got us off to a flier. The partnership between Stokes and Woakes was fantastic. Anytime you need someone to stand up, he (Stokes) seems to be the guy to do that. Smart cricket between him and Woakes,” he described the batting effort. 

Ben Stokes, the player of the match, echoed the same thoughts regarding England’s innings. “It was a nice wicket to bat on, had some tennis-ball bounce. We [Woakes and himself] built a good partnership,” he said. 

England were 132/1 in their first 20 overs with Malan striking the ball cleanly. In the next 10 overs, however, the Dutch bowlers took three wickets for only 46 runs which ceased England’s momentum. 

“We didn't start well with the ball, let them get away from us. Bowlers did well to drag them back, but they got away again towards the end for a slightly above par total.” said the Dutch skipper, Scott Edwards. 

In the last 10 overs, England notched up 124 runs for only two wickets. “Whenever there was pressure building I had a look at the scoreboard and reminded myself there was a lot of time remaining in the innings. Tried to take it deep and cash in later,” said Stokes regarding his approach during his hundred. 

“We held them well till the 43rd over. Maybe we could've tried a couple of different plans. But credit to them, they batted well,” Edwards shed light on the same. 

The Netherlands were never in the contest during the run chase. They were 23/2 in the first powerplay as Woakes and David Willey swung the ball throughout their new ball spell. Woakes picked 1/19 in his seven overs while Willey snaffled 2/19 in his seven overs. The spinners also pouched three wickets each - Moeen Ali (3/42) and Adil Rashid (3/54). The Dutch lost their last five wickets for only 16 runs. Teja Nidamanuru was the top scorer with an unbeaten 41.

“The same old story with the bat. It was a pretty good wicket,” Edwards said in the post-match ceremony. 

“Need to find a balance chasing a 340 score. We'll talk about it and figure it out what we could've done better. Like you said we've been good in patches. Just got to do it for longer,” he explained further. 

Both Buttler and Stokes praised Woakes for his all-round contribution which had been missing in England’s dismal campaign. 

“He [Woakes] is a genuine all-rounder for us, he has been a great cricketer for England over the last 2-3 years, and today he proved it,” said Stokes. 

“He's [Woakes] a class cricketer. It was high-class swing bowling, and deserved more than one wicket that he got,” mentioned Buttler. 

Both sides are out of the race for the semi-finals in this World Cup. However, the European nations can still get into the top eight which will seal their spot in the 2025 edition of the Champions Trophy. England face Pakistan next on November 11 while the Netherlands will lock horns with the host-nation, India, in the last league game of the tournament.