“I am taking a look forward to seeing my mates and being on the field with them”
Ben Stokes will return to cricket after a four-and-a-half month break in the first Test of the 2021-22 Ashes, in a major boost to England’s hopes of winning in Australia for the first time in 11 years.
Stokes has not played any competitive cricket since July 26, when he played through injury for Northern Superchargers in the Hundred. He missed England’s series against India, pulling out of the squad days before the first Test citing a want to focus on his mental wellbeing, and used to be not thought to be for selection for the T20 World Cup.
But after undergoing further surgery on his left index finger – which he broke all over the IPL in April and did not fully get better after he first went under the knife – he has returned to low-level training in recent weeks which will ramp up ahead of England’s departure to Australia on November 4.
“I had a break to prioritise my mental wellbeing and I got my finger sorted,” Stokes said. “I am taking a look forward to seeing my mates and being on the field with them. I’m in a position for Australia.”
Ashley Giles, England’s managing director of men’s cricket, said: “Following a very successful operation on his finger and several conversations over the previous few weeks between Ben and I, our medical staff and his management team, Ben called me to say he used to be in a position to go back to cricket and used to be excited approximately the prospect of playing a remarkable role in the Ashes series.
“Time and time again, Ben has demonstrated how important he’s to the England team and having him to be had for the Ashes series is very good news for all of us and, in specific, Chris [Silverwood], Joe [Root] and the remainder of the players. Having not played for some time, we can move forward cautiously over the following couple of weeks to verify he’s fully prepared across all facets of his game.
“Ahead of a very engaged period of cricket, we continue to remain mindful of the stresses on all our personnel, and our primary focus continues to be the wellbeing of all of our players and strengthen staff.”
More to follow