Stokes Clarifies 'Plot' Comments as Pope Secures No. 3 Spot

Ben Stokes' pre-game remarks regarding the return of Jacob Bethell following his IPL spell seemed to imply that Pope and, thus, Zak Crawley would be in jeopardy when it comes to converting 12 into an XI.

In his post-match briefings, Stokes went one step further and said that the misunderstanding was deliberate as part of a plot against Pope. Stokes was incensed by the ensuing coverage, claiming he had made it plain that Bethell's readmission to the team was a no-brainer.

Stokes also discussed the circulating remarks with Pope in between. Still, Pope did the best he could to dispel any awkwardness by strumming a brisk 171 to virtually guarantee his regular place at No. 3 for the India series next month, after sacrificing his position in New Zealand to take the wicketkeeping gloves, which allowed Bethell to make such a strong argument.

Considering how much of Pope's recent career has been based on outside ambiguity about his ideal role, even if he is on England's strongest team, that bolshiness is nothing new.

He currently averages 43.06, so the answer to both of those questions appears to be No. 3, and Stokes has given an unqualified affirmative. "He's my vice-captain, and he's been incredible for me at number three and the team," Stokes said.

However, Pope admits that because of the range of characters he has played, a lot of his backstage work has been focused on becoming more flexible. He has batted at first drop, at No. 6 with the gloves, and even captained four Test matches in the past year alone.