A badly torn shoulder muscle meant Stokes had to admit defeat in his battle to be fit for the decider at the Kia Oval, handing over the reins – and a 2-1 lead – to his deputy.
As well as filling the leadership void, Pope will have to make up for the absence of Stokes the all-rounder. The 34-year-old picked up player-of-the-match honours in each of the last two Tests and his competitive edge will be a big miss for a side built in his image.
Pope, who stood in for four matches last year, is a quieter and less-combative character but has his eyes on the prize.
“It’s gutting he’s missing the final Test, he’d love to be out there. But the impact he’s had on this series with both bat and ball has been awesome,” he said.
“When you’ve got a cricketer like Ben, you’re going to miss them, but we appreciate everything he’s done this series and hopefully we can do him proud this week.”
Stokes’ lay-off means a first appearance for the year for Jacob Bethell, who announced himself as a rising star in New Zealand last December and has since put in some exciting performances in the white-ball arena.
Initially seen as a rival for Pope’s spot at three, he will now slot in at six and offer some overs of left-arm spin with Liam Dawson dropped from the XI.
“I think everyone knows the skills he’s got, everyone saw him smack it in the T20s and one-dayers,” said Pope.
“He’s shown he can click straight into Test match mode as he did in New Zealand so that’s really exciting. With his personality he’ll be pretty excited for the opportunity to try and help us win a series.”
Pope’s only defeat during his previous stint in charge came at the Oval – where Sri Lanka sprung a surprise in a dead rubber – and he now has the chance to put that right at his home ground.
“I was trying to learn on the job. Last summer was pretty much the first time I’ve done it for more than one game in professional cricket,” he said.
“I’ve got some good things to look back on, what worked well and what I could have improved on. I know this ground well and how this pitch plays.
“It’s about using what I know about these conditions to make good cricketing decisions.”
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