Ollie Pope insisted Ben Stokes can contribute fully as an all-rounder this weekend after the England captain dealt with a bout of cramp in his left leg against India on Friday.
Shortly after making his first fifty in 2025 on day three of the fourth Test, Stokes looked in increasing discomfort and eventually headed back to the pavilion as he retired hurt on 66.
England revealed the issue was nothing more substantial than cramp and he resumed his innings just under an hour later, going to stumps 23 runs short of a first Test century since the 2023 Ashes.
Pope admitted Stokes' significant workload might be catching up with him, with the 34-year-old having sent down 129 overs – the most he has ever bowled in a series with one-and-a-half Tests still to go.
“I think he's OK,” Pope said. “It was just cramping down his leg and it managed to spread to his whole leg. Probably just a build-up of the amount he's pushed his body over the last four or five weeks.
“He's pushed himself to some serious limits so far and probably that was just a build-up of it but he'll be good to go with bat and ball.”
Joe Root's 150 and Pope's 71 helped England close on 544 for seven and a significant lead of 186, and they are firm favourites to move into an unassailable 3-1 series lead over the next two days.
But there would have been bated breath at Emirates Old Trafford when Stokes was visibly struggling with the same leg where he had major surgery at the turn of the year.
Stokes has dispelled doubts about his fitness against India, sending down taxing nine and 10-over spells at Lord's while he is the
Root, meanwhile, has been backed by Roicky Ponting to become Test cricket's all-time top run-scorer after he was leapfrogged to second on the list by the Yorkshireman.
It was another red-letter day for Root, who eclipsed Rahul Dravid by getting to 30 on the third morning of the fourth Rothesay Test against India before moving ahead of Jacques Kallis with one extra run.
Better was to follow in the afternoon as Root moved serenely to a 38th Test hundred, joint fourth-highest alongside Kumar Sangakkara, and reaching 120 took him past Ponting's haul of 13,378 runs.
Sachin Tendulkar is way out in front on 15,921 runs but Ponting believes the tally is not beyond reach, pointing out 34-year-old Root's incredible recent form, which includes 25 centuries since turning 30.
“Congratulations Joe Root,” the former Australia captain said in his role as a pundit for Sky Sports. “A magnificent moment in history. Second on the table. Just the one more to go now.
“About two and a half thousand runs behind, but the way his career's gone over the last four or five years there's absolutely no reason why [he cannot be number one].
“You talk about the skill and class of player that Joe Root is, but you can't ever underestimate the mental capacity side of things as well.
“He still has that hunger and desire to continue to find ways to improve and get better. Trust me, that doesn't get easier the older you get. Find ways to change your game and improve.
“But he's made little technical changes to make him a more complete and better Test match batsman.”
In the last year, Root has become England's most prolific run-scorer in Tests and ODIs, snatching the record from Alastair Cook in the former last October and the latter from Eoin Morgan last month.
Root was eventually dismissed for 150 to close to within 2,512 runs of Tendulkar, and England teammate Pope echoed Ponting in claiming the record could be within his grasp in a couple of years.
“He loves playing for England in Test cricket more than anything so I'm sure if his body allows … he'll obviously be driven to make it to number one,” Pope said.
“But I think he just wants to keep playing for as long as he can. The excitement he still has to play Test cricket, he's always got the biggest smile on his face. The hunger he has for it, I wouldn't be surprised if he can chase him down.
“It's great from a team perspective having someone score so many runs so consistently. It's not something we try to rely on but the way he steps up is incredible.”
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:
1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Roll%20of%20Honour%2C%20men%E2%80%99s%20domestic%20rugby%20season
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWest%20Asia%20Premiership%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Bahrain%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Premiership%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Jebel%20Ali%20Dragons%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Hurricanes%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Division%201%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Sharks%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%20Harlequins%20II%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20Division%202%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%20III%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Sharks%20II%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDubai%20Sevens%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EChampions%3A%20Dubai%20Tigers%0D%3Cbr%3ERunners%20up%3A%20Dubai%20Hurricanes%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Read more from Aya Iskandarani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Angela Bassett, Tina Fey
Directed by: Pete Doctor
Rating: 4 stars
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House
The five pillars of Islam
Opening Premier League fixtures, August 14
- Brentford v Arsenal
- Burnley v Brighton
- Chelsea v Crystal Palace
- Everton v Southampton
- Leicester City v Wolves
- Manchester United v Leeds United
- Newcastle United v West Ham United
- Norwich City v Liverpool
- Tottenham v Manchester City
- Watford v Aston Villa
