England’s red-ball skipper, Ben Stokes, has suffered an injury in the hamstring during the ongoing Hundred tournament, ruling him out of contention for the upcoming home Test series against Sri Lanka. The timing could not have been any worse, with the ECB taking strong, decisive moves to manage its resources within the team carefully. The ECB has withdrawn Chris Woakes from The Hundred due to workload management.
Only Stokes and Woakes are currently available as pace-bowling all-rounders in the present scheme of things, so having Woakes fully fit for the Sri Lanka series is crucial, more so with the uncertainty hanging over Stokes’ participation. Chris Woakes had initially been due to play in Birmingham Phoenix’s next two matches, against Trent Rockets and Manchester Originals. On Monday, August 12, however, Birmingham Phoenix announced that he would be “unavailable for the remainder of the tournament.”
It is understood this is a precautionary step, with Woakes likely to have a big role to play should Stokes miss out on the series against Sri Lanka. The ECB’s decision clearly underlined that there is a strategic need for keeping these key men fresh for Tests of the highest order, with no like-for-like replacements available for the pace-bowling all-rounder role.
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As far as Stokes is concerned, he is going to undergo a scan on August 13, which will then show the extent of his injury and if he would be able to travel to Sri Lanka or not for the series. The injury of the 33-year-old skipper became a worrying issue after he limped off the field in a game against Manchester and later that evening, having been spotted on crutches.
The captain of the Northern Superchargers, Harry Brook, said that the injury “doesn’t look great.” That would be the first missed Test series for Stokes in case he failed to recover in time since his assumption as skipper—a monumental loss to England’s campaign.
Chris Woakes has been pulled out keeping in mind the Test series against Sri Lanka#ChrisWoakes #TheHundredhttps://t.co/48vIzah6Qd
— India Today Sports (@ITGDsports) August 13, 2024
Further adding to England’s selection quandary, opener Zak Crawley has already been declared out of the three-match series against Sri Lanka because of his injury, so he won’t be able to participate in this series. Crawley’s cover has been announced as Dan Lawrence, who is expected to start in the playing XI.
This means Jonny Bairstow could be back in contention after being dropped from the initial squad; however, his chances of starting still look bleak. Also, should Stokes arrive unfit, uncapped batter Jordan Cox may well make his debut. In other news, former England cricketer Ian Bell is expected to join the Sri Lanka camp for the Test series.
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The 42-year-old, currently working as a member of Birmingham’s coaching staff in The Hundred, will link up with Dhananjaya de Silva-led Sri Lanka in Manchester following that tournament. It is this experience, and the resultant insights of Bell, that could be a boost the visiting team is looking forward to playing against an England side that might be weakened by the absence of key players like Stokes.
