England are expected to be beaten at The Oval after a turbulent fortnight with Ben Stokes back in the series decider vs New Zealand at Trent Bridge | Cricket news

Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson made it past the 12th hour. The shy England batsmen could not do the same.

The captain and one of his bowlers walked out at midnight after the final day of the first Test, causing his teammates to be run out before noon on the second final day.

Stokes and Atkinson’s nightclub antics – however minor they may have been – meant they stood out at the Oval and England’s inexperience was on display in their absence, out-thought and incompetent by a tricky New Zealand side.

We pondered after England’s hard-fought first-round win at Lord’s whether the result represented a reset after a mistake-filled Ashes winter.

But after another booze-related episode, and another test-play experiment, it feels like a full-on recap, except it’s a different Antipodean team that ends up getting drunk.

England lack the tools to compete at the Oval

As devastating as the destruction of the Oval was, it was also completely predictable.

Without Stokes, Atkinson, Ollie Robinson (sore knee) and Jamie Smith (paternity leave) and with the first three players and another fast bowler playing his second Test and first in four years, England lacked the tools to compete.

It was like getting into a sword fight with a balloon cutlass.

Sonny Baker came in with gusto but lacked guile at times.

Teammate Matthew Fisher took five wickets in the match but was often anodyne, with his impressive half-century from the No 9 position reducing England’s deficit to 100 runs in the first innings and dimming hopes of a spoils.

Wicketkeeper James Rew endured a painful outing, with the byes flying past him – most of which were not his fault, he admitted – dropping catches and not many notes.

Stokes’ stand as captain Joe Root oversaw a misjudged second-morning bowling that allowed New Zealand to reach 100 runs in less than 20 overs and sweep the Test away from England.

In Root’s defence, Stokes may have done the same thing as the theory of the short ball to lower order players has been a staple of recent captaincy.

But 1) he may have acted faster than Root that it didn’t work and 2) he may not have left Jofra Archer grazing outside for more than an hour when this plot was hatched.

The high-profile Trent Bridge trial begins on Thursday

However, Stokes is mainly / partly to blame for his absence. He will have to wear that. The good thing is that he will be able to try to fix the chaos he was part of when he returns from the last Test in Nottingham later this week.

What England’s shellacking of south London has done is set the resolution to a thrilling series. For those of you who love professional sports, you are in good shape.

England’s win and a devastating and confusing week will be largely forgotten. But the defeat and, well, the futures of captain Stokes, coach Brendon McCullum and managing director of cricket Rob Key will be discussed again.

The plot will begin well before the first ball is bowled in the Midlands, and McCullum, who has spoken well in public since the nightclub incident, will speak again on Tuesday, when he will no doubt be asked again if his relationship with his captain is as strong as it seemed.

Then, on Wednesday, Stokes, who has not spoken in public since the nightclub incident (not playing a proverbial batting as he scored 95 off 118 balls at Durham when England were thrashed by the Black Caps) will be delighted by the media. There will not be an empty seat in the house.

Stokes will be surrounded by the media on Wednesday

Hopes of Stokes holding court at the captain’s press conference looked remote after the nightclub episode. There were reports that he will leave the position of captain. There were even suggestions that he could not fit into cricket completely.

If at any time Stokes was thinking about serious sporting moves, we still don’t know why. Was he angry at himself for letting his side down by breaking curfew – given the kind of person he is, which seems likely – or was he angry at the lack of support from his superiors after all he’s done for his country?

McCullum and Key had ample opportunity to support Stokes as captain between the first and second Tests but chose not to, so is there a split?

Did Stokes come close to quitting? Did he know that the midnight cutoff was still in place since his party arrived after the game ended?

What did you make of England’s 4-2 win over Croatia in their World Cup opener last week and whatever their result is against Ghana on Tuesday?

We may get the answers to these questions – maybe not about football – and others on Wednesday, but from Thursday onwards it will be about things on the pitch.

England could come back strong in Nottingham

Although New Zealand are now in a phase after a sloppy exit at Lord’s, and everything around England remains dark, the hosts should have the weapons to win, their XI could be similar to the one that demolished the Kiwis at the start of the series.

Stokes back. Atkinson back. Robinson back. Smith came back. Shoaib Bashir – left out at The Oval – back (the introduction of a spinner would improve the pitch if nothing else).

The Stokes-McCullum axis is also back but if things are going well at Trent Bridge you wonder how long it will last.

As ever, it’s all about Ben Stokes. You couldn’t go against him riding to the rescue and getting England out of trouble, after his decision to ride in The Rex Rooms following the win at Lord’s got them into trouble in the first place.

Watch the third Test between England and New Zealand, at Trent Bridge, live from 10am on Thursday (first ball 11am) on S.ky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event. Get instant access with NOW.

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