ENG Vs IND: Why Ben Stokes Bowled A 7-Ball Over On Day 1 Of The Headingley Test? Reason Explained

England skipper Ben Stokes was involved in a strange and unexpected moment on Day 1 of the first Test against Team India at Headingley in Leeds on June 20. The opening day of the series opener was eventful as the visitors dominated the proceedings to put themselves in a commanding position.

Ben Stokes opted to bowl first after winning the toss in the first Test. However, the decision seemed to have backfired as Indian batters put on a brilliant show on a seaming-friendly pitch. Shubman Gill (127*) and Rishabh Pant (65*) stitched an unbeaten 138-run partnership for the fourth wicket to guide the team to a total of 359/3 in 85 overs at the end of Day 1.

Yashasvi Jaiswal too shone on the opening day with his maiden Test century in English conditions and scored a brilliant 101 off 159 balls while forming a 129-run stand for the third wicket with the Indian Test skipper. For England, skipper Ben Stokes led the bowling attack with a spell of 2/43 in 13 overs, while Brydon Carse picked up a wicket while conceding 70 runs in 16 overs.

Bowled 7 balls without conceding a wide or a no-ball

Amid the discussion on India's dominance on Day 1 of the Headingley Test, one of the talking points from the day was a rare 7-ball over by England skipper Ben Stokes, a moment that did not go unnoticed by fans and the umpire.

The incident took place in the 51st over of England's first innings bowling. Stokes delivered an outside off to Jaiswal, who tried to defend but edged it and landed well short of Joe Root, who was positioned at the second slip. However, Root ended up throwing at one of the helmets, which were stashed behind the wicketkeeper. The fifth delivery of the over was declared a dead ball as the ball hit the helmet kept on the ground, according rules of the game by MCC.

Therefore, Ben Stokes had to bowl an extra delivery to complete the over, resulting in a rare 7-ball over without conceding a wide or no-ball, since the 5th delivery was counted as a dead ball due to striking the helmet placed behind the keeper. Additionally, Team India was awarded a five-run penalty as per the MCC rule, which states the batting team is granted five runs if the bowling side hits the helmet kept behind the keeper.

Did stokes just bowl a 7-ball over without a wide or a no ball? What happened?#INDvsENG #Cricket twitter/aiYP8fK5S0

- Emu (@Emuboss23) June 20, 2025

To add to the misery of England's bowling attack, that extra delivery by Ben Stokes did little to change the momentum as India continued to dominate proceedings with ease, further piling pressure on the hosts on what turned out to be a long and fruitless day in the field.

Ben Stokes and Brydon Carse were the only wicket-takers for the hosts on the opening day, while the likes of Chris Woakes, Joshua Tongue, and Shoaib Bashir failed to complement their efforts.

Team India will look to pile runs on Day 2

Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant have put India in a commanding position on the opening day of the Headingley Test. Indian batters proved captain Ben Stokes wrong for opting to bowl first, as they fought out brilliantly on seaming conditions and laid a strong foundation for potentially posting a mammoth first-innings total on Day 2.

Gill will look to carry on with his innings, while Pant will aim for a century after settling in superbly and adopting a measured approach to counter-attack England's bowlers. Karun Nair, Shardul Thakur, and Ravindra Jadeja are yet to bat, and with the pitch easing out slightly, Team India will stretch the total, which might put England under immense scoreboard pressure.

Interestingly, Team India is playing the first Test match since 2011 without Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Ajinkya Rahane.

Rohit and Kohli stepped away from Test cricket before the squad announcement for the England tour, while Ashwin moved on from his international career midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, after the Gabba Test in Brisbane ended in a draw in December last year. Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have not retired, but not in a scheme of things in the red-ball set up, given that BCCI selectors and Team India are looking at the future.

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