England Test captain Ben Stokes almost pulled off another unthinkable chase before it got too steep at the end against Australia in the second Ashes Test at Lord's on Sunday, July 2. Stokes just revels under pressure, in tough situations and comes out on top more often than not. Barring the 2016 T20 World Cup final, Stokes has been England's saviour and the go-to player in big matches. Whether it was the World Cup final in 2019 or the T20 World Cup final in 2022 or the Headingley Test in 2019 where the hosts were on the brink, he has a special ability to soak all in and stand up for his side.
Taking a cue from Stokes' 155-run knock, cricket analyst Ayaz Memon asked users to name five current cricketers in the world, who may not be the best but have the ability to change the gamer on its head and are big match players as far as Test cricket is concerned. Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh decided to put forth his picks. Harbhajan included only two Indian players but left out the likes of Virat Kohli and R Ashwin, who have proven their mettle in the format in the last decade or so.
Harbhajan's list included Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Nathan Lyon while he spelled wrong each one of them apart from the veteran Australian off-spinner. Smith, who is set to play his 100th Test match has already proven his mettle in the format as he averages a whopping 60 after 99 games.
Rishabh Pant has been India's most important Test player in recent times, especially overseas while the improvement of Ravindra Jadeja as an all-rounder has been magnificent. Jadeja consistently does well for India, with the ball at home and with the bat in overseas Tests while Lyon has been just class apart having played 100 Test matches on the trot and being good everywhere he plays.
Though, fans weren't really happy with Harbhajan ignoring Ashwin, who with both bat and ball has been equally good as Jadeja if not more in the last few years. India will next play a Test series against the West Indies starting July 12, Wednesday.
