Ben Stokes in race against time to be fit for first Test against Pakistan
England Test skipper Ben Stokes could miss the first Test in Pakistan next month as he continues recovery from a hamstring injury.
Ben Stokes could miss the start of the ICC World Test Championship series against Pakistan next month as he continues to recover from the hamstring injury sustained during The Hundred Men's Competition.
Stokes has continued to train with the Test team during the Sri Lanka series, but admitted that he may not recover in time for the first Test that begins on October 7.
"The recurrence rate of these injuries is 50%, which is quite high," Stokes told ESPNCricinfo.
Stokes was seen batting in the nets during the second Test but to avoid aggravating the injury, Stokes says he'd rather take that extra bit of time for recovery.
"I'd rather take an extra two weeks than run the risk of potentially doing something worse and then putting myself out of the game for longer. I'm just making sure that I'm doing everything right and everything I possibly can to try and give myself a chance to being fit for that first Test."
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Ben Stokes hit 84 from 76.
Ollie Pope has stepped in for Stokes in his absence and led the team to a 2-0 lead in the Sri Lanka series with the final Test beginning later this week.
England begin their tour of Pakistan in early October with the first Test in Multan from October 7. The team had won 3-0 in Pakistan during their previous tour in late 2022.