IPL 2021 | Great chance for English guys to experience Indian conditions, stresses Ben Stokes
Ahead of the World T20 in India, Ben Stokes has stressed that the IPL is a great chance for the English guys to experience the Indian conditions under the immense pressure of the competition. Stokes also crossed his fingers, hoping that there would be fans allowed back in the stadium.
With Jason Roy being the latest entrant of English players in the Indian Premier League, England have an array of players, who would have the chance to test themselves in Indian conditions, ahead of the World T20 in the country. While England lost the series 3-2 against India, the IPL would serve as an additional opportunity for the players to explore themselves.
English all-rounder Ben Stokes, who would be part of the Rajasthan Royals setup, stressed that the Indian Premier League is a great chance and opportunity for the English players to experience the conditions in the country. He also added that by being exposed to constant pressure, in a highly competitive environment, the players would learn leaps and bounds.
"Being constantly exposed to that is a huge benefit to us as a team, especially with the T20 World Cup coming up at the end of the year in India; it's a great chance for the English guys to get more experience in these conditions," Stokes said.
"Not only is that great for the individual but it is also great for the players involved in the England set-up; it gives them experience in the most high-profile competition in the world but not only that - you are under constant pressure to perform," the imposing all-rounder added.
On the other hand, the T20I series also saw the return of the fans in the stadium before the COVID-19 outbreak shut down proceedings yet again. Stokes admitted that he is ‘crossing’ his fingers to have the fans back in the stadium.
"Fingers crossed that fans will be allowed back in at some point during this IPL because they are a huge part of this game and why we play. It was an amazing feeling to have fans back in the grounds on our (England's) recent tour of India - even though 100 per cent of the crowd were against us! Being back in the thick of that atmosphere was amazing!"
While Stokes’ side Rajasthan finished as the wooden-spoon winners, the all-rounder admitted that it wasn’t a black and white effort from them. He insisted that there were moments of great ones followed by poor performances.
"Last year was obviously disappointing. Yes, we finished bottom of the table but I think it's not as simple as that. We ebbed and flowed with our performances throughout the season: we had some great ones followed by some pretty poor performances."
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