Sensational Stokes Stars As England Record Their Highest Successful Chase In Ashes History

England's Ben Stokes, scored an unbeaten 135 as England won the Third Ashes Test at Leeds by one wicket to level the scores at 1-1

An all-time great knock, one of the best in the Ashes history by England's World Cup hero Ben Stokes pulled England across the line in one of the most incredible Test comebacks to keep his country's Ashes hopes alive. The hero of Headingley, Stokes, scored an unbeaten 135 as England won the Third Ashes Test at Leeds by one wicket to level the scores at 1-1. England chased down the target of 359 to register their highest successful chase in Ashes history . Their previous highest successful run-chase in Ashes had come in 1928-29 when they managed to chase down 332 runs. England was all out for 67 runs in their first innings, incidentally, last wicket stand was for 76 runs. In what turned out to be an all-time classic, some missed run-out chances, a dropped catch and one of the most decisive umpiring howlers in Test history,  handed England a memorable win. Stokes was on fire as he played one of the best innings in the history of Ashes to bring up a ton from 199 balls. The star all-rounder at one point was in such control of the game that he played reverse sweep or switch hit or something equally outrageous and sent it into the stands. England, bowled out for just 67 in their first innings, needed 73 more runs to reach a victory target of 359 when last man, the bespectacled Jack Leach, came into bat on the fourth day. But Leach held firm before Stokes, the batting hero of England's World Cup final triumph, hit the winning runs by flaying paceman Pat Cummins for a four that saw the all-rounder finish on 135 not out. This was England's highest successful fourth-innings chase and the tenth highest in Test history. A remarkable victory, which arguably surpassed their 1981 Ashes Test triumph at Headingley when they beat Australia after following-on - saw England level the five-match series at 1-1.

Ben Stokes in last 2 months:

Won the World Cup for England; Man of the Match in the final Scored century in the 2nd inns of Lord's Test to save the Test; Man of the Match Scored 135* in the 4th inns of Leeds Test to win the Test and level the Ashes; Man of the Match. — Bharath Seervi (@SeerviBharath) August 25, 2019

Brief scores: Australia 1st innings 179 (M Labuschagne 74, D Warner 61; J Archer 6-45) England 1st innings 67 (J Hazlewood 5-30, P Cummins 3-23) Australia 2nd innings 246 (M Labuschagne 80; B Stokes 3-56) England 2nd innings 362-9 (B Stokes 135 no, J Root 77, J Denly 50; J Hazlewood 4-85) Result: England won by one wicket Series: Five-match series level at 1-1. A