England captain Ben Stokes is in major doubt for the Sri Lanka Test series after injuring his hamstring playing for Northen Superchargers in the Hundred on Sunday. He ran through for a quick single early in the chase, but pulled up suddenly and clutched at his left hamstring. He had to be carried off the field and was then pictured wearing crutches.
Given the difficulty Stokes had in walking, one would suggest at least a grade two hamstring tear. Such an injury requires a recovery time of at least six to eight weeks. Should that be the case, Stokes will miss the entire three-match Test series, given the final match begins on September 6.
Ben Stokes hamstring injury “doesn’t look too good” – Harry Brook
Stokes will go for scans on Monday which will reveal the extent of the damage. “Ben Stokes is having his hamstring assessed. Further updates will be available from tomorrow [Monday],” said a Superchargers spokesperson, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Harry Brook, Stokes’s England and Superchargers teammate, said the injury doesn’t look good. “It doesn’t look great, unfortunately. I think he’ll be getting a scan tomorrow and we’ll see how he is,” he said.
Stokes is likely to join Zak Crawley as the first-team players out of the Sri Lanka series. Crawley is out with a fractured finger, and Dan Lawrence is set to open the batting. Ollie Pope, the vice-captain, is expected to lead should Stokes be ruled out.
The Sri Lanka series is squeezed into a short timeframe. The first Test begins on August 21, followed by the second and third Tests on August 29 and September 6 respectively. England then travel to Pakistan in early October for a three-match Test series that starts on October 7, which looks to be a much more realistic return to action for Stokes.