- Ben Stokes is unlikely to bowl in the India series due to recent knee surgery.
- He aims to return to bowling by summer, focusing on batting for now.
- He underwent meniscus repair and bone spur removal.
Following the 2023 World Cup, Stokes had surgery due to a problematic knee. The 32-year-old had a strict rehabilitation regimen in front of the India tour and participated in the 10-team competition in India as a pure batter.
During a news conference, Stokes acknowledged that bowling is not his current forte, but he believes he can improve throughout the summer. He stated, as reported by The Telegraph:
"Bowling is such an unnatural thing for the body to go through that it’s not going to be a case of right, I’m good now, straight back into bowling. Remember the last ball I bowled was actually in the Ashes at Lord’s (in June)."
"So my body is nowhere near ready to even be thinking about competitive bowling at the moment, but if I get to a stage in this tour where we can start building myself back up to bowling; then, hopefully, by the summer, that’s where I’ve earmarked as playing a full role I want to be doing."
Due to a knee ailment that initially developed during the February 2023 tour of New Zealand, Stokes was forced to miss nearly the whole IPL season in order to recover in time for the Ashes.
"I had some stitches put in my meniscus, and I had a big bone spur taken out of my knee. It was a bit more than (just) a clean-out. It’s not like you have surgery, and you are immediately better. Surgery is always the last option."
"Surgeries can go very well, but they can also sometimes not go too well, and set people back even further, and potentially even end careers. I'm 32 now, and sport isn’t here forever. I want to play for England as long as I possibly can. The older you get, the harder you work."
The starting XI for England's first Test against India, which starts on Thursday, has also been announced.
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