England Check captain Ben Stokes has strongly denied allegations that he has been prioritizing The Hundred over County Championship matches. Stokes took to social media to deal with the claims, reaffirming his dedication to County Cricket and expressing disappointment over the criticism. The star all-rounder sustained a hamstring damage throughout a current The Hundred match between Northern Superchargers and Manchester Originals, ruling him out for the rest of the English summer time.
Journalist Criticizes Stokes
Scott Wilson, a journalist for a UK publication, criticized Stokes for what he perceived as an absence of dedication to County Cricket. Wilson accused Stokes of selecting to play in The Hundred, which he known as a “circus,” as an alternative of representing Durham in County matches. Wilson posted on X (previously often known as Twitter):
“So Ben Stokes is not allowed to play any county cricket for #Durham through the summer time, however he is fantastic to mess about within the circus that’s the Hundred, rupturing his hamstring and ruling him out for the remainder of the summer time. Completely farcical.”
Stokes’ Response
Stokes rapidly responded to Wilson’s criticism, defending his actions and clarifying that he had performed in three County Championship matches for Durham through the summer time. He replied to the journalist on social media:
“Chief Sports activities Author??? I performed 3 Championship video games for Durham this yr.”
Influence of Stokes’ Absence
Stokes’ hamstring damage means he’ll miss the upcoming Check collection towards Sri Lanka, with Ollie Pope set to captain the facet in his absence. Stokes’ absence is a major blow to England, as highlighted by Moeen Ali, who emphasised the problem of changing Stokes’ multifaceted function within the crew:
“Initially, when you lose a participant like Stokes, you aren’t solely shedding a batter, you might be shedding the captain, shedding one other bowler – the entire steadiness of the crew is now tousled a bit truly.”
Moeen added:
“Who to herald, methods to steadiness the facet, it’s going to be arduous work, however I’m positive they’ve already determined or give you a plan.”
Stokes is now focusing on a return to health for England’s tour of Pakistan in October. The upcoming three-match Check collection towards Sri Lanka is about to start at Previous Trafford on August 21.
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