is it now Stoke’s Ashes?

The visit to Headingley by Joe and I turned out to be one of those ‘I was there ‘ moments. The Third Test match in the Ashes series turned out to be a classic.

Joe and I bought the tickets for this match last October and it was not possible to obtain tickets for either of the London venues. It turned out to be a significant outlay as only the more expensive tickets were available ; £130 for day three and £65 for day 4. Also being the Bank Holiday weekend the trains fares were ridiculous and the hotel not cheap. It just so happens that there were other events going on in the area- Leeds music festival all weekend and horse racing in York.

So the place was rammed and the trains very busy. From Chesterfield to Leeds on the Saturday there was cramped, shoulder to shoulder standing room only.

On the way the outcome of the match did not look bright with England having been bowled out for a paltry 67 on day 2. I was anticipating another poor batting display after the Australian 2nd innings and the action to be all over by the end of day 3. However it did not turn out that way.

After finishing off the Australian 2nd innings better than expected England actually batted for the most part like it was a Test Match rather than a T-20 match. Though Roy hadn’t learned. Root and Denly played controlled and measured cricket and kept England in the match. Until Denly was out and Stokes came in towards the end of the day. We sat and watched and enjoyed the slow and tense and conservative tempo. Joe and I retired to the town for a fancy burger and couple of beers before bedtime. We we tired- having got up at 4-00 to catch the early train.

On Sunday they came out to resume needing just over 200 to win with 7 wickets standing. It wasn’t long before Root was back in the pavilion and it looked all so unlikely.

There were periods of optimism but wickets continued to fall though Stokes was still there keeping the ball out snd hitting a few runs. Finally he was left with the number 11 and 73 still needed. The game changed and was a classic to watch. As Leach defended his wicket and Stokes consoled the strike so that Leech had 1 02 balls to face, ran suck twos to keep the stroke and began to hit wonderful boundaries. The crowd were active and loving the moment. Cheering the big hits- straight and concocted and the blocking at the other end.

The runs needed were falling and the excitement rose. The Aussies were feeling the pressure. The bowling remained great to watch but errors occurred; in the fielding, the throw to the wrong end, the missed easy run out by Nathan Lyon, the wasted use of a review which left a more clear lbw that was not given un-reviewable.

In the end a fantastic run chase, Stokes 135 not out, Leach noon -out on 1 having batted stoically, the crowd going wild and the press/ media calling it the best batting performance ever and best Test Match ever.

As ever one man gets the attention with some for Leach for his great innings of 1 not-out.

Not so much written about the solid and more dull batting from others to set the platform Stokes did bat so well and adapted his approach extremely well to the changing needs of the match.

The media have gone will not surprisingly – like everyone else for that matter.

Ben Stokes century leads England to epic Ashes-saving win at Headingley

By Stephan Shemilt

BBC Sport at Headingley

Men’s Ashes: Third Specsavers Test, Headingley (day four of five)

Australia 179(Labuschagne 74, Archer 6-45) & 246(Labuschagne 80)

England 67(Hazlewood 5-30) & 362-9 (Stokes 135*, Root 77, Hazlewood 4-85)

England won by one wicket

Scorecard

Ben Stokes inspires England to sensational third Test win over Australia

Ashes 2019•Australia 179 & 246, England 67 & 362-9
•Stokes hits 135 not out as home side level the series at 1-1Supported byAbout this content

Vic Marksat Headingley

Ben Stokes (centre) and Jack Leach lift their arms in celebration after the former hit the winning runs at Headingley. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

Headingley 1981 was a foregone conclusion compared with this. So, too, the World Cup final in July, as Ian Botham’s incredible exploits of 38 years ago have been matched, maybe surpassed. But on a day like this who cares about rankings anyway? Ben Stokes produced the innings of a lifetime to snatch a one-wicket victory, which keeps the Ashes alive and the game alive, while threatening to cause multiple heart failures among those lucky enough to witness this contest.

So in the end Joe and I had a great sporting weekend that did not look that promising. Ah the beauty of Test Cricket.