London [UK], July 31 (ANI): As England gears up to face India in the fifth and final Test at The Oval, a lot of eyeballs will be on the local Surrey hero, Ollie Pope, the designated number three and the stand-in captain in the absence of an injured Ben Stokes.
Stokes has been ruled out of the final Test due to an injury in his right shoulder. After scoring 304 runs and taking 17 wickets in the series, Stokes’ all-timer series has finally come to an end, with two clutch ‘Player of the Match’ performances at Lord’s and Old Trafford, the latter of which saw him score a century and take a five-wicket haul in the same match.
Pope previously stepped into the captaincy role last year when Stokes was sidelined with a hamstring injury last year, winning three Tests and losing one. Two of these wins came against Sri Lanka at home and one against Pakistan in Multan. The sole defeat came to the Lankan Lions at their home ground, The Oval.
In three matches played at The Oval, Pope has maintained a solid record, scoring 322 runs in six innings at an average of 64.40, with a century and two half-centuries in six innings. Notably, England has lost two of the three Tests it has played at The Oval.
As a captain, Pope’s individual batting returns have been modest. In four matches and seven innings, he has scored 191 runs at an average of just over 27. Notably, 154 of those runs came in a single innings against Sri Lanka at The Oval, a match England ended up losing.
The 27-year-old has had a mixed series so far, scoring 257 runs in four Tests and seven innings at an average of 36.71. He has registered one century and one half-century, with a best score of 106.
Pope has proven to be a reliable number three batter for England. He has scored 2,281 runs in 32 Tests at that position, averaging 42.24, with eight centuries and eight half-centuries across 55 innings. His highest score is 205. (ANI)
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