England captain Ben Stokes has said that he is not going to rush his recovery for Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing IPL 2023 as his main target is to stay fit for the upcoming Ashes 2023. However, Stokes has had to sit outside in IPL matches for Chennai Super Kings as he battles an issue with his left knee as well.

Moreover, Stokes has mostly batted for CSK during this season’s IPL and bowled only one over in two matches due to a nagging left knee injury. The veteran all-rounder has 194 Test wickets and he is confident that he can overcome the soreness to support the pace attack as England try to reclaim the Ashes against Australia as well.

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“I’ve worked so hard over the last month, five weeks, to get where I am now,” Ben Stokes said. “Being able to bowl pain-free, touch wood, has been good. I went for 18 runs, but I was like ‘oh I managed to bowl an over without pain in my knee’.”

Notably, England did so well under his Test captaincy and when the Ashes will begin on June 16, they will try to keep the momentum on.

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“I think I know what the starting XI is going to be, there or thereabouts,” Ben Stokes told Sky Sports. “Having the option to bowl above 90mph, any captain wants that. When it comes to that first Test I will be making sure I pick the best team for that first game. We’ve been clear, especially with the ground staff around England, about what type of wickets we want and they’ve been responsive. We want flat, fast wickets.”