‘Rare to see’ – Ben Stokes leaves England Test match midway through innings in career first

Ben Stokes' innings against India briefly came to an early end as he retired hurt.

The England skipper had tonked an impressive 66 not out from 116 deliveries before he had to head back to the pavilion in the 116th over at Old Trafford in Manchester.

It marked the first time in Stokes' international cricket career he had to retire hurt.

He was replaced at the crease by wicketkeeper Jamie Smith as England sat in the commanding position of 491/4 in the first innings of the fourth Test against India.

The 34-year-old had been struggling with cramp in the preceding overs and a number of quick singles had evidently taken its toll.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Australian cricket great Ricky Ponting hoped Stokes hadn't sustained anything serious.

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"It is rare to see a batter leave the field with a cramp," Ponting said.

"But Stokes obviously feels he can't bat properly and is actually hindering his teams' progress. Or is it something more sinister?"

Thankfully, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) allayed any major fears as they confirmed Stokes' issue was just cramp in what was music to fans' ears.

Those same fans were on their feet amid raucous applause when Stokes strode back out to the middle just after 6pm after Chris Woakes was dismissed in the 130th over for four runs, leaving England on 528/7.

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Stokes ultimately made it through to stumps on day three and finished 77 not out.

Supporters would have been nervously sweating on Stokes' fitness given his importance with the ball during India's first innings.

The skipper snared five wickets for 72 runs, the most picked up among the English bowling attack.

India was ultimately all out for 358 in the first innings as they set a modest target for the hosts to chase down.

Stokes' initial exit came after he helped stack up a 150-run partnership alongside Joe Root.

Root himself didn't last much longer after his skipper's forced exit, as he departed a handful of overs later for 115 from 248 deliveries when he was stumped by substitute wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel.

It brought the curtain down on what was a stellar innings from Root as he rocketed up the all-time Test run scorers list.

Root began the day in fifth on the leaderboard behind Rahul Dravid's tally of 13,288.

But by the time he was sent packing, the 34-year-old had moved past Dravid, Jacques Kallis and Ponting to sit second with 13,409.

However, Root has some work to do if he is to become the outright all-time Test run scorer.

The crown belongs to Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, who scored a staggering 15,921 runs throughout his Test career.