Ben Stokes left red-faced when quizzed about Jasprit Bumrah's hype ahead of IND vs ENG 3rd Test, says 'I thought I’d get through...'

England captain Ben Stokes seemed exasperated with the questions surrounding India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah yet again during a press conference. Stokes turned up for England's post-match press conference following their 336-run drubbing against India in the second Test at Edgbaston.

'Jasprit Bumrah' question irates Ben Stokes

India opted to rest the 31-year old in the second Test against England to manage superstar speedster's workload. Despite his absence, India's bowling attack led by Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep rose to the occasion and helped them script historic win at Edgbaston, which was their first-ever win at the venue since 1967. While Akash Deep shone with a brilliant 10-wicket haul, Mohammed Siraj contributed with a phenomenal seven-fer in India's winning cause.

At the post-match press conference. Stokes' said:

“I thought I’d get through a press conference without being asked about Jasprit Bumrah. We play against each other so often, you know what you will be faced with, so you put it into practice in training."

He also highlighted about the difficulty in replicating the pace of the game while practicing.

“Try to do what you can with the coaches and the sidearms, going wide on the crease, trying to give you practice like their bowling lineup. It’s always tough to replicate something that will come down at you in a game," Stokes added.

When asked about Jofra Archer with respect to their bowling strategy, he didn't comment much about and is yet to decide.

“Again, it’ll be a decision that we have to make, seeing how everyone pulls up. We’ve had him here this week to get around the group and build him up with his workloads. Everyone’s in consideration for the game at Lord’s. We’ve had some unbelievable wins and some bad defeats. I feel I’m quite good, and the team is quite good at staying level throughout those ups and downs. We knew coming into the series it wasn’t going to be easy," Stokes further stated.

'Bumrah' boost for India for Lord's encounter

Meanwhile, India’s Test captain Shubman Gill confirmed the news of Bumrah’s availability for the third Test against England which is slated to start from July 10 at the iconic Lord's stadium. Bumrah's return implies that Prasidh Krishna might be be dropped from India's playing XI. In addition to the Karnataka-based pacer, swords of uncertainty loom large on Nitish Kumar Reddy and Karun Nair who haven't left any impact in the series yet.

Talking about the second Test, India rode on Akash Deep's sizzling six-fer to fold England for 271 in pursuit of a colossal 608-run target. Shubman Gill remained the architect of India's historic win as he ran riot with the bat and notched up robust 269 and 161 in the match which ultimately helped India tighten screw on England and eventually sealing the deal in their favour.