Former England pace bowler Stuart Broad has said that Ben Stokes will keep a close eye on the team during his absence from action. The England’s captain has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match Test series against Sri Lanka after sustaining a hamstring injury while playing for the Northern Superchargers in The Men’s Hundred 2024 as well. In Stokes’ absence, vice-captain Ollie Pope will lead the team as
well.

“He’s already texted me saying he’s going to be the coach so I don’t know what Baz (Brendon McCullum) is going to be doing,” Broad told the PA News Agency. “He’s someone who likes to bat, likes to bowl. Ultimately you probably up your injury risk if you’re not playing any sort of intensity cricket.You can’t not play any cricket from the end of the West Indies series through to the start of the Sri Lanka series because your body will then be in the field the first day of Sri Lanka going ‘what are you doing, what’s going on?'”

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“You’re better off in a match than nets; I used to hate nets, I needed match intensity and The Hundred was the cricket that was going on that suited that the best. Not that he (Stokes) spent much time in the middle in his games particularly, but he was still playing for his mental sharpness against the world’s best players, Tim Southee etc,” he continued.

However, Ben Stokes played three matches in The Hundred 2024, scoring four runs in the process as well. But, he was dismissed for a golden duck by Tim Southee in his return to the tournament after three years and failed to leave a mark in the rest of his games as well.
The former pacer also added that England should use the opportunity to prepare for life beyond Ben Stokes as well.

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“There’s not much you can do about a hamstring really. It’s not as if he landed awkwardly or anything, he was just in deceleration mode. It’s a real shame for the Test-match team because he looked so fit. He’s worked so hard on his fitness. But to use that old sporting saying of ‘take the positives’, it actually gives England the chance to play against Sri Lanka with a make-up of team without Ben Stokes, that they are going to have to trial at some stage. Stokesy hasn’t been able to bowl for a year-and-a-half but has been playing as a batter. What happens the night before Brisbane in 18 months’ time if Stokesy’s not very well?” Stuart Broad concluded.