Ben Stokes has pencilled in two County Championship fixtures and, maybe, a Lions outing as his only competitive cricket before England meet New Zealand at Lord’s on 4 June.
Key dates first. Durham v Worcestershire, Chester-le-Street, 8 May. Durham v Kent, 15 May. England Lions v South Africa A, Arundel, 22 May – that last one dependent on how his body feels after the first two. Then, if all is well, straight into the Test summer.
The England captain is still healing from surgery on facial fractures suffered when a ball from a Durham academy player smashed into him during pre-season nets. The incident also nudged back a return from the groin strain picked up at the SCG in January.
In a recorded chat with the ECB’s media team, Stokes called it a freak moment that could have ended far worse. “I copped one straight in the face,” he said. “[It was] pretty nasty, but funnily [enough], probably the best result of a bad situation, to be honest.” He went on: “A couple of inches one way or the other and I might not be here doing this interview if I didn’t turn my head around. All things considered, although I had pretty major facial surgery to sort it out… I’ve got quite lucky, so I’m pretty thankful for that.”
“It was a pretty scary situation to be in, but thankfully I’m still here and everything’s alright.”
Doctors estimate the lay-off at “about a month [to] five weeks”, meaning the all-rounder is back in the gym and shadow-batting but yet to face proper bowling. As ever, workload will be self-policed. “If I can get through the loads that I want to get through and feel pretty good out in the middle, then hopefully I’ll be good to go for the summer,” he said, admitting any Lions appearance hinges on “how I feel”.
Durham’s director of cricket, Marcus North, sees no need to hurry. “Ben knows his limits. We’ll give him the overs he requests and not one more,” North told BBC Radio Newcastle, adding that the presence of their Test captain, even briefly, “gives the dressing-room a lift”.
Stokes also touched on England’s bruising 4-1 Ashes defeat, insisting his relationship with head coach Brendon McCullum remains solid. Yet accountability sits squarely with the players. “We’ve got ourselves to blame for a lot of it,” he said, accepting that the group had to “take a few bullets” after performances that at times bordered on “unacceptable”.
Analysis: Three games is not much cricket before a Test series, but it fits a pattern. Since taking the captaincy Stokes has prioritised freshness over volume, trusting match-hardness to kick in quickly. Bowling workload, rather than batting, tends to be his bigger concern, so it will be interesting to see how many overs he gives himself for Durham. The Lions fixture, if he plays, should offer a higher tempo without the full glare of Test cricket.
For now, England will simply be relieved their captain avoided something even worse. A couple of Championship outings in the north-east is a small price to pay for what could have been a life-changing injury.
