Ben Stokes compared Rory Burns to England great Alastair Cook as he forecast a long international future for the Surrey opening batsman. The 29-year-old Burns made a hundred in the opening Test of this year’s Ashes series and was one of England’s few successes during their recent series loss in New Zealand, with the left-hander averaging 61.33.
“We have found a gem in Rory Burns,” Stokes told talkSPORT radio on Tuesday. “He is going to have a long future. “He is similar to Alastair Cook in the way he operates, occupying the crease and looking to spend time out in the middle to score his runs.
“When we first saw him train with us in Sri Lanka, although he didn’t get off to a great start and get the big runs, there was something about him that you could say, ‘yes, he is a Test match opening batsman’. England vice-captain Stokes added: “That hundred he got in the Ashes was fantastic, he got a brilliant hundred in New Zealand too. “He has got everything there to be a very successful opener for England over a long period of time.”
Burns opened alongside Dominic Sibley in New Zealand, with the 24-year-old managing just 38 runs in three innings. Nevertheless Stokes, speaking ahead of England’s tour of South Africa later this month, pleaded for patience when it came to assessing Sibley.
“Dom has got the key things and the basic things to be a successful opener. “I am not sure if people have already written him off after not doing too well, but you need to give players like that time to take that next step, to understand what changes they need to make with their technique because the wickets are different, and the bowlers are quicker in Test match cricket.”
