LONDON: England Test captain Ben Stokes suffered a serious facial injury after being hit by a cricket ball.
The 34-year-old all-rounder posted a photo on Instagram showing his badly swollen and bruised right eye, a scratch on his cheek and lip and a bandage stuck in his nose.
“You should see the state of the cricket ball,” read the caption of Stokes’ photo, alongside a laughing face emoji.
Stokes is back in England after a dismal Ashes tour, which ended in a 4-1 defeat to Australia last month.
Although Stokes has made it clear he wants to continue to captain the red-ball team, his position remains uncertain amid a review by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
England coach Brendon McCullum has described some of the Ashes fallout as “out of order”.
Stokes is no longer a member of England’s white-ball squad and will not take part in the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka which begins this weekend.
He could then play for Durham in the early rounds of the County Championship before England begin their home Test season against New Zealand at Lord’s on June 4 – Stokes’ 35th birthday.
Stokes is currently recovering from an adductor injury suffered during the fifth Ashes Test in Sydney in January.
The injury prevented him from bowling in Australia’s second innings and ended a frustrating tour for the England skipper, who bowled well throughout the series but struggled with the bat.
Stokes’ groin problem is the latest in a series of injuries that have blighted his career.
In 2024, he tore his hamstring twice and finished last season’s home series against India on the sidelines with a shoulder problem, after undergoing surgery in late 2023 to treat knee problems.
Stokes is contracted to England until the end of the 2027 home season and he could now avoid taking part in next month’s Hundred auction, leaving him free to focus on the Test team.
