England captain Ben Stokes to undergo a scan on his hamstring ahead of Pakistan tour
England Test captain Ben Stokes will undergo a scan on his hamstring next week ahead of the three-Test tour of Pakistan, scheduled to begin on October 7 in Multan. The England Cricket Board (ECB) are hoping the 33-year-old can regain full fitness for what could be a grueling tour.
The seam-bowling all-rounder suffered a hamstring injury during The Hundred 2024 fixture between the Northern Superchargers and Manchester Originals at Old Trafford. As a result, he skipped the entire three-Test series against Sri Lanka, prompting Ollie Pope to step in as captain.
However, the selectors have named him in the squad for the Pakistan tour. Zak Crawley, who also missed the series against Sri Lanka due to a finger injury, has returned to the fold too.
England squad for Pakistan tour: Ben Stokes (captain), Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes.
"I'd rather take an extra two weeks than run the risk of potentially doing something worse" - Ben Stokes
Speaking to reporters early last month, the Durham all-rounder said he is doing everything in his power to ensure he is ready for the Pakistan tour. As quoted by ESPN Cricinfo, he stated:
"The recurrence rate of these injuries is 50%, which is quite high. I'd rather take an extra two weeks than run the risk of potentially doing something worse and then putting myself out of the game for longer. I'm just making sure that I'm doing everything right and everything I possibly can to try and give myself a chance to being fit for that first Test."
The star cricketer captained England to a series whitewash the last time they visited Pakistan and will look to repeat the feat this time too.