The Test captain has been managing the persistent harm to his left knee for a while nevertheless it has worsened this yr, severely proscribing his means to bowl for the reason that winter tour to New Zealand , to the purpose the place he completed this summer season’s Ashes collection taking part in as a specialist batter.
A six-month break between the Ashes and England’s subsequent Test dedication, a five-match collection in India within the New Year, had offered a uncommon hole within the calendar and appeared the best window for the 32-year-old to aim to resolve the difficulty as soon as and for all.
Instead, nonetheless, he has come out of 50-over retirement to hitch Jos Buttler’s aspect as they appear turn out to be back-to-back world champions in India this autumn and can play his first ODI in additional than a yr when the four-match collection in opposition to New Zealand will get underway in Cardiff tomorrow.
“It’s been a month since we finished the Ashes, it’s been a good chance to rest up and get into a good position for these one-dayers and the World Cup afterwards,” Stokes mentioned.
“I’ve been having some good conversations with some specialists, rehab and physios, the surgeons, the guys who know what they are doing. There is a plan in place. I know what’s going to happen, I just don’t think now is right time to say what I’m doing.”
Should Stokes determine to go beneath the knife, he might use the hole between the top of the World Cup in mid-November and the beginning of England’s Test tour to India in late-January. Beyond that collection, the schedule is extra congested, with the IPL adopted by a T20 World Cup within the USA and Caribbean, after which England play 12 Tests throughout the house summer season and excursions to New Zealand and Pakistan earlier than the top of 2024.
Stokes confirmed he’ll play as a specialist batter through the World Cup, seemingly slotting in at No4, however insisted he stays determined to proceed his profession as an all-rounder additional down the road.
“I’m going to be doing some more intensive work from now until the summer next year around all that, making sure I’m giving myself the best chance I can of playing the next two to three years as an all-rounder,” Stokes mentioned. “You go through different thoughts. At end of Ashes when had I another difficult series with the ball because my knee is sore, it’s like: ‘I can’t be bothered with this anymore, it’s just too hard’.
Ben Stokes battled knee trouble during this summer’s Ashes series
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“But then you pull yourself away from that and keep pushing on, give yourself the best chance to do it. I get bored in the field not bowling.”
“We have got a very good plan in place,” he added. “The medical team have been brilliant, getting different opinions. It’s nice knowing after the World Cup we’ve got something, a really good plan we can do and we can stick to. I want to be playing next summer as a genuine all-rounder. This winter is all about playing this World Cup, then getting this knee sorted.”
Stokes retired from 50-over cricket final summer season, shortly after taking up as Test captain, citing issues over managing his workload throughout all three codecs. However, conversations with Buttler and head coach Matthew Mott continued all through his absence, with the door all the time open to a World Cup return.
“There were obviously just a lot of things to think about,” Stokes defined of his determination. “First and foremost, I needed to see how I got through the Ashes and then think about what I had after the World Cup, with the Test tour and all those things coming up.
“It was just about factoring all those things in. When I felt like I had to make a decision and make myself available, it was an easy one to make.
“Cricket now, if you play multiple formats, you’re looking at 10 or 11 months of the year. As you get older, going out on the field day in, day out does get a bit harder. There were a few things to weigh up but yeah, I’m going to the World Cup now, so it’s alright.”
