5 Players who did well for England in the Investec series

#5. Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes is second-in-command to Joe Root and scored a well-deserved century at the Oval

Ben Stokes stuck around when it mattered and had a pretty satisfactory series first up as the new vice-captain of the Test team. The Durham county lad scored 299 runs in the series at 37.37 including a century and two fifties.

He also picked up seven wickets in the four tests but his bowling still remains a matter of concern especially if he needs to fit in as the fourth seamer.

His only century of the series came at the Oval which he himself described as the hardest of his England career. Battling his attacking instincts, Stokes slugged it out in the middle to score an uncharacteristic century batting alongside the master of the trade – Cook. The highlight of his innings however were the three consecutive sixes he hit off Keshav Maharaj to bring up his much deserved century.

Ben Stokes was also instrumental in the deciding final game at Manchester stitching two of the most important partnerships for England which proved pivotal in the end. A 43-run partnership with Joe Root in the first innings for the fifth wicket gave England some stability and then another 65-run partnership with Jonny Bairstow helped the team post a respectable first innings total of 362.

Similarly, in the second innings, Stokes was involved in a 57-run stand with Joe Root that at a time when South Africa was on charge. These three partnerships came at the right time for England and helped offset some seriously good bowling from the Proteas courtesy Ben Stokes.