Ben Stokes, the captain of England’s red-ball team, is doubtful for the forthcoming home series against Sri Lanka due to a hamstring injury sustained during the current Hundred. In light of this, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chose to withdraw Chris Woakes from the competition, citing workload management. The management made this decision because, except from Stokes and Woakes, the team lacks a pace-bowling all-round player.
Chris Woakes was originally scheduled to play in the forthcoming games between the Manchester Originals and Trent Rockets for the Birmingham Phoenix.
But the team said on Monday, August 12, that the cricket player will be “unavailable for the remainder of the tournament.” The ECB is attempting to protect Woakes since the all-rounder is probably going to play a bigger part and Stokes might miss the entire Sri Lanka series.
According to, on August 13, Stokes will get a scan, and the outcome will determine whether or not he plays against Sri Lanka. The 33-year-old hobbled off the field during the Manchester United game, and by the end of the evening, he was on crutches. Harry Brook, the skipper of the Northern Superchargers, revealed that the injury doesn’t appear to be good and that he will miss his maiden Test series as England captain if it doesn’t get better.
Notably, Sri Lanka’s three-match series starter Zak Crawley is already out of the game. He was replaced in the squad by Dan Lawrence, who will probably start in the starting lineup. Although he can return to the squad, Jonny Bairstow—who was benched for the series—is unlikely to make the starting eleven. Should Stokes be ruled out, uncapped batsman Jordan Cox might receive his first cap.
Also Read: Watch: Michael Pepper is sent packing in The Hundred 2024 by Mitchell Santner’s full stretch dive
For the Test series, Ian Bell, a former cricket player for England, will be training with Sri Lanka. Currently employed as a coach by Birmingham, the 42-year-old is expected to move to Manchester to work with the Dhananjaya de Silva-led team following the conclusion of The Hundred.
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