Success breeds success, and Bazball-era England has been a shining instance of this.
Starting in June 2022, England has chased six targets of 250 or extra efficiently. Two of those have come in opposition to India – 378 right here in Birmingham in July 2022 and 371 in Leeds final week, which additionally occur to be its top-two run pursuits in historical past.
“We’re confident in our abilities to be able to go out and chase when we have to bat in the fourth innings,” captain Ben Stokes stated on Tuesday (July 1, 2025), forward of the second Test.
“That obviously comes from a lot of good experiences over the last three or four years. So, going out there in the fourth innings, you’re naturally confident. Still, 370 [371 in Headingley] is a lot of runs, and we knew we had to play very, very well to get close. So, [there is] even more confidence from last week, but this week is a new game. We start from zero again.”
Stokes was additionally happy with the way in which his physique held up as he bowled 35 overs, six months after his hamstring surgical procedure.
“I did everything possible to not worry about anything outside of what we normally worry about,” the 34-year-old stated. “But coming out of that game, feeling good in all of my spells, rhythm-wise, being able to have spells throughout the day… it’s all coming out nicely. I managed to maintain my pace, which was one of the things I wanted to concentrate on”.
