Ben Stokes has confirmed he will have surgery after the 2023 ODI World Cup for a nagging knee injury that has restricted him from bowling recently.
What is the status of Stokes’ injury?
A chronic left knee injury has hampered Stokes for most of 2023, which began with him bowling only seven overs across two Tests against New Zealand at the start of the year. Bought by Chennai Super Kings for the 2023 IPL, Stokes received a cortisone injection in his knee before travelling to India, but he only played two games for the eventual winners, bowling just one over.
He has not bowled a single delivery since day four of the second Ashes Test at Lord’s due to the knee injury but decided to return to ODIs for the World Cup, a year after retiring from the format.
Surgery after World Cup
The 32-year-old confirmed his surgery on Friday (November 3). “I am having surgery after the World Cup. So we go to those meetings and generally take a physio and a doctor with me and then those two start talking and then I just turn up and get put to sleep, wake up and hopefully it’s better.”
On being asked if he would be fit for the India Test series that begins on January 25, Stokes replied in the affirmative. “Yeah, I’ll be fine for the Test Series in India.”
Stokes did not play the first few games of the World Cup due to a hip injury, which made the Test skipper fear his tournament was over. He played his first game in the tournament against South Africa and has had little impact, making 5, 43 and 0 in three games thus far.
England will play two more games in the World Cup, against Australia on Saturday before concluding their campaign against Pakistan in Kolkata on November 11.
England are tottering at the bottom of the points table, with just one win from six games.
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