Atherton reckons that in his three years at the helm, the series against India is Stokes' sternest test of leadership qualities.
His performance in Pune was a powerful response to his recent struggles in the Ranji Trophy, where he had been dismissed for ducks in both innings during Mumbai's loss to Jammu and Kashmir.
'So there was some good fight there and they got some rewards late in the day. So yeah, I think both teams will be pleased with their efforts.'
Put into bat, Abhishek's onslaught propelled India to their highest powerplay score of 95 studded with 16 boundaries.
Images from the fourth T20 International between India and England in Pune on Friday.
India crushed England by 336 runs to level the series at 1-1 on Sunday
Cheteshwar Pujara, leading Sussex, scored a century in the first innings against Durham in the the County Championship Division Two match.
Harry Brook continued his remarkable form in New Zealand with a second century of the series to drive England to 280 before the tourists reduced the Black Caps to 86 for 5 at the close of play on Friday, the first day of the second Test.
Devdutt Padikkal hit a stroke-filled 92 not out after right-arm pacer Akash Deep shone bright with the ball with a four-wicket haul as India A took control of the four-day second unofficial Test against England Lions on the opening day in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
India equal England's first-innings score of 387 with Test in balance
New Zealand took charge on the second day of the third Test by dismissing England for 143 and making 136/3 at close of play for an overall lead of 340.
India captain Rohit Sharma notched up a sublime fifty as the tourists thrashed England by 10 wickets after a career-best performance of 6/19 by Jasprit Bumrah in the first one-day international of the three-match series in London on Tuesday.
India finished day three of the second Test on 64/1 to lead England by 244 runs after they dismissed the hosts for 407 in the first innings at Edgbaston on Friday.
The Sunrisers are once again betting big on their power-packed batting line-up to deliver the goods in IPL 2025.
Saurabh Kumar grabs his 22nd five-for as India 'A' close-in on victory over Lions
Harry Brook became only the sixth England batter to hit a triple century in Tests as the visitors piled on the runs on Day 4 of the first Test against Pakistan in Multan on Thursday.
Defeat will severely dent both the teams' dreams of a semi-final berth in the tournament, as South Africa and Australia have already notched two points.
England Test captain Ben Stokes will skip the Twenty20 series against India but will return for the one-day internationals.
Kane Williamson scored a magisterial 156 at his most productive venue to drive New Zealand to the brink of a consolation victory over England at the end of the third day of the third Test.
Sai Sudharsan made the opportunity count in his comeback game with a fifty while Rishabh Pant suffered another injury as India played the old-fashioned way to reach 264 for four at stumps on Day 1 of the fourth Test in Manchester on Wednesday.
Dube was hit on the helmet by a Jamie Overton bouncer and seamer Rana replaced him despite it not being a like-for-like replacement as concussion substitute rules mandate.
Gus Atkinson took a hat-trick as England stayed on course for a dominant victory in the second Test against New Zealand in Wellington on Saturday, reaching 378 for 5 at the close of play on Day 2 with an imposing lead of 533.
Karun Nair has got starts in majority of his six innings in England but he has not been able to convert them into something substantial.
Yashasvi Jaiswal continued his meteoric rise in international cricket with yet another outstanding overseas tour
'There will be things that happen between the two teams but both teams know there's a line you can't cross but it's not really been troubled too much'
A second-string England cruised to a 48-run victory over Ireland in the second ODI at Trent Bridge on Saturday
England captain Jos Buttler is confident that the upcoming T20I series against India will not impact their preparation for the Champions Trophy.
Josh Inglis slammed a brilliant century as Australia completed the highest chase in an ICC men's tournament against England in Lahore on Saturday.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction saw some foreign names earning big bucks, headlined by Aussie all-rounder Cameron Green
Expect some fireworks for the highly-versatile Cameron Green along with Quinton de Kock, Matheesha Pathirana, Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi.
New Zealand made a strong start to their bid for a consolation victory in the third and final Test against England at Hamilton's Seddon Park on Saturday, reaching lunch on the opening day on 93 without loss.
England's aggressive approach will help when they face spin-friendly conditions in Pakistan during their Test series in October, the country's former bowler Stuart Broad has said.
Here's how Bumrah bamboozled England batters in the 1st ODI at the Oval in London on Tuesday...
IMAGES from Day 3 of the third Test match, played between England and India at Lord's, London, on Saturday.
India and England have played with contrasting approaches in the World Cup so far, producing contrasting results. That is unlikely to change when the teams meet in Lucknow on Sunday.
An injury-plagued India could be forced to depart from their preferred template when they takes on a reinvigorated England in the fourth Test starting in Manchester on Wednesday.
Ahead of the mini-auction, scheduled to be held in Doha on December 26, the 10 franchises have released their list of retained and released players.
England skipper Jos Buttler expressed delight in Ben Duckett's record-breaking knock even as he hailed Australia for chasing down a massive total of 352 runs in the ICC Champions Trophy Group B match in Lahore on Saturday.
Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel smashed half-centuries as India defeated England by four wickets in the first One-Day International in Nagpur.
England became the first team to win a Test by an innings after conceding more than 500 runs in their first innings.
