England cricket captain Ben Stokes has issued an apology to his teammates following their defeat to Pakistan in the second Test match in Multan.
The tourists suffered a 152-run loss as Pakistan levelled the series 1-1 on the fourth morning.
Stokes admitted to letting his frustrations show during a difficult session on day three when England dropped two crucial catches.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Stokes said: “It’s the first time in my captaincy that I’ve let my emotions show in my body language, with how I was feeling as the game was unfolding.”
England cricket captain Ben Stokes has issued an apology to his teammates following their defeat to Pakistan in the second Test match in Multan
REUTERS
The 31-year-old all-rounder expressed regret over his reaction, stating: “I apologised to the group and said that was poor of me. I was a tired and grumpy old man last night. You won’t see that happen again.
“I owned up to that and I’m very annoyed at myself for letting that out. It’s something that I don’t want to do, or be seen to be doing.”
The captain acknowledged the importance of catches in subcontinent conditions, noting: “No one means to drop catches, but it just proves how important catches are out in these subcontinent conditions, because they don’t come along that often.”
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Ben Stokes feels he let his team-mates down as England crashed to defeat against Pakistan
REUTERS
The match saw Pakistan spinner Noman Ali claim eight wickets for 46 runs on a pitch offering extreme turn.
England were set a near-impossible chase of 297 but faltered when two catches were dropped off Brydon Carse’s bowling on the third afternoon.
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Ben Stokes praised Pakistan after England lost the second Test on FridayREUTERS
The beneficiary, Salman Agha, went on to score a crucial 63 runs, significantly impacting the outcome of the match.
Stokes himself experienced a handling error during England’s innings, losing control of his bat while attempting to charge Noman Ali.
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The captain ruefully commented on the incident: “Yeah, I’ll try and remember to keep holding my bat the next time.”
The third and final Test of the series will commence on October 24.
England will then set their sights on beating the West Indies in their first one day international on October 31.