England all-rounder Ben Stokes will miss the opening month of the county season while recovering from a serious facial injury.
Stokes, 34, suffered a broken cheekbone after being struck by a ball during a training session with his Durham teammates last month. He underwent surgery, which was successful, but the rehabilitation process requires more time before he can return to competitive cricket.
The Durham star had hoped to play against Kent in the first round of the County Championship. However, he is now expected to miss the first four matches of the domestic campaign. He is likely to return in May to face Worcestershire and Kent, ahead of England’s upcoming Test series against New Zealand.
Durham coach Ryan Campbell confirmed the updated plan, stating:
“He was going to play the first game, he’s been training so hard to be ready. But he won’t play in that, obviously. We have to wait for the specialists to clear him.”
Campbell highlighted that Stokes is following a carefully structured recovery schedule:
“He has got to recover from the facial injuries and then build up again. It is a long old summer and he will have that mapped out but is keen and ready to go.”
The coach also emphasized the severity of the injury and how Stokes was fortunate to avoid further damage:
“It was so, so much worse than you’d think. If it hits him in the eye, it could have been different. His cheekbone worked the way it is supposed to: it caved in and looked after the rest of him.”
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Ben Stokes has not played since England’s Ashes series in Australia in January. The incident serves as a reminder of the risks cricketers face during training, even for experienced professionals. His return is highly anticipated by both Durham and England fans.
