England’s Test cricket captain suffers hamstring injury

It was a recurring sight in last year’s Ashes: Ben Stokes hammering a ball to the fence and then reeling away in pain from his battered left knee.

That degenerative problem made Stokes only the most occasional of bowlers, and often restricted his movement. At times, the pain also seemed to focus him, not least during a pivotal innings on the second day of the Leeds Test.

Ben Stokes suffered a hamstring injury in a Hundred game. Credit: Getty Images

Never, though, did the knee trouble force Stokes out of action in the middle of a match or series. His consistent presence on the field as captain of England has been a key part of the Bazball story, helping to marshal his men with sharp tactics and force of personality. Stokes has played 22 consecutive Tests as captain.

Now, however, an apparent hamstring tear in that same left leg has done what the knee problems could not. Stokes, 33, is almost certainly out of England’s next Test series at home to Sri Lanka, and the soft tissue injury raises a concerning new scenario for the team coached by Brendon McCullum before next year’s Ashes tour.

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