Stokes made Pune dance, and validated his price tag

The English dailies were fussing over the degree of Ben Stokes's shoulder injury sustained in the IPL, while the all-rounder accompanied teammate Rahul Tripathi to the Gymkhana ground in Pune. Stokes was forced to watch two consecutive games from the dug-out, but was hitting the ball flawlessly in the nets. A fitness test on the eve of the clash against Gujarat Lions, however, gave him the green signal he wanted; and the Stokes that emerged on the other side was the Stokes everyone knew.

The Lockie Ferguson bandwagon would have been nettled, and for good reason, to have the New Zealand paceman left out after a Man of the Match outing. In just his second game of the season, he had finished with figures of 2 for 7, including 18 dot balls in four overs. But for Rising Pune Supergiant, drafting in Stokes for Ferguson on Monday (May 1) turned out to be the right move, validating the thought process behind it.

Pune's bowlers, led once again by Imran Tahir, had done well to restrict the big-hitters in the Gujarat camp, and left their batsmen with 162 to chase. At 10 for 3, with the top order back in the dressing room, Pune were seemingly in dire straits. Stokes found himself in the middle in as early as the second over. It was foreign territory, but the situation that was inundated with pressure, wasn't.

Stokes took his time with Tripathi to settle into his knock, but the first of the ominous signs for Gujarat was a drive straight past the bowler and mid on off his fifth ball. Ever since the game against Mumbai Indians where Stokes's injury concerns sprouted, he stayed off bowling at training. His prowess with the bat though, remained unhampered, as lusty blows soared into the stands on the on side. Stokes was replicating what he did in the nets, using his power to muscle deliveries into the on side, scoring as many as 45 runs in the region, with four sixes.

'Great strokes from Ben Stokes' roared the commentators on air, but those great strokes were accompanied by some very nimble batting. Legspinner Ankit Soni had tied down the batsman, who was playing the wrong line and was unable to pick out the slider from front of the hand. MS Dhoni, meanwhile was trudging along at 6 off 14 balls. The rotation of strike, however, helped the all-rounder break the shackles with successive sixes off Ravindra Jadeja, as he kept reducing the deficit, inching closer to his second half-century of the tournament. It was a spectacular switch of gears from there as Stokes went after Dwayne Smith in the 16th over with 60 runs required off 30 balls.

Dhoni departed for a 33-ball 26, after playing out 18 dots, but Stokes had a point to prove and the stage was set. It took all but eight innings, but it arrived nevertheless. Stokes was on 72 off 49 with Dan Christian for company. The pair, once again, were agile between wickets, and clobbered the odd boundary to reduce the equation to 25 off the last two. It was then that Stokes began cramping and was evidently struggling. Two sixes off Basil Thampi and he was on the ground, grimacing in pain.

Treatment was followed by a boundary that took him to his first IPL century and Pune on the brink of a come-from-behind win. Christian completed the victory with a six as Stokes let out a roar to mark the coming into his own.

"He's been hitting the ball really well," said Steve Smith of Stokes. "We're very happy with where he's at and how he's played. Tonight was a fantastic innings, under pressure and to get us home the way he did. He hit some very clean balls there, chose the right balls to hit too. Timed it to perfection. It was a tremendous knock."

Prior to this innings, Stokes had one half-century, but two Man of the Match awards, that came on the back of his bowling. On the night, he went for 36 runs in four overs, but his unbeaten 103 runs off 63 balls - his highest T20 score - didn't just make up or it, but were more than enough to earn him his third award of the season - the most for any player this year.

There was pressure on Stokes even before coming to the tournament, given the price of INR 14.5 crore he was bought for at the auction. The price tag brought with it a suitcase full of expectations that he would've felt obliged to deliver. Stokes's discernible involvement with the side, however, gave the impression of accountability that only a price tag could not have influenced.

"He's always said from the start that he judges himself on how he plays," said Smith. "He's not going to put any extra pressure on himself just because he has a big price tag next to his name. We were very excited to get him. I had said before the auction to the guys just do what you have to to get him. All-rounders are so valuable in T20 cricket and he bats, bowls and fields well. He's a perfect fit for our team, particularly after Mitch Marsh was ruled out as well. He's done a terrific job for us. We paid a big amount to get him. We know he's a quality player. Certainly earned his cash tonight."

It was exactly a year ago that a red-faced Stokes was being consoled by his English teammates after being hit for four successive sixes by Carlos Brathwaite to give West Indies their second World Twenty20 title. From a life that, perhaps, was brought down to a halt, to being the highest-ever paid overseas player in the IPL, Stokes's fortunes have changed drastically in one year's time.

"We just want to make the world dance, forget about the price tag", said Jessie J. At the Maharashtra Cricket Association, Stokes did both; made Pune dance, but while he forgot about his price tag, he validated it to his franchise.

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