MULTAN — The confirmation on Saturday here that captain Ben Stokes has been ruled out of next week’s first Test against Pakistan was the worst possible start to England’s tour.
It had been widely expected that Stokes’ recovery from the hamstring tear he sustained in The Hundred had been sufficient enough for him to at least play as a batter in the series opener that starts at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Monday.
But now it seems like he is a serious doubt even for the second Test, played at the same venue from Tuesday week, after Stokes gave a downbeat assessment on his recovery from the injury he sustained on 11 August.
“Not sure,” came the reply when asked about his chances for the second of the three Tests to be played out here before the end of the month.
“I’ve pushed myself incredibly hard and worked really hard with the medical team to get to where I’m at now. I think I’m further ahead than what we expected. I’ll be working just as hard over the next 10 days to try to get myself fit for the second Test.”
What now seems obvious is the injury that initially ruled the 33-year-old out of the final Test series of the home summer against Sri Lanka was actually worse than anyone outside the camp realised.
There was some good news on Saturday when England confirmed Stokes has signed a two-year central contract. You may remember he only agreed a one-year deal this time last year as he looked to keep his options open.
As well as signalling he is committed to playing – and presumably captaining – the Test team for the next couple of years, it also shows his priorities lie away from franchise cricket and this will also give England greater control over his workload for a longer period of time.
Yet this latest injury setback begs more questions about the long-term fitness of a player who has put his body through more than almost any other England cricketer in the modern era.
Stokes’ operation on a long-term knee injury last November was meant to be the full stop on a two-year period where he had battled his body almost on a daily basis to get on the field.
But like many other sportsmen, fixing one area of the body has put strain and vulnerability on other parts. Perhaps it was always inevitable Stokes might break down at some point after returning to bowling last summer.
The length of this lay-off, stretching towards two months now, is a worry. Moreover, it begs the question of what England can do to prevent further issues in the future, particularly ahead of two huge series against India and Australia over the next year or so.
England might be able to cope without Stokes for part of a home series against India. But for the Ashes? The thought of the team being without the one player the Australians truly fear for that titanic Ashes struggle Down Under next winter does not bear thinking about. It’s not outlandish to suggest that England’s chances of winning in Australia will be zero without Stokes.
Indeed, even with him, they might have a tough task being competitive given they have not won a single Test in Australia since their 3-1 series victory in 2010-11.
This news should also concentrate the mind of coach Brendon McCullum, who surely wants to include Stokes when he takes over the leadership of England’s white-ball teams in January.
There’s a big chance that McCullum will want Stokes in Pakistan again next February for the Champions Trophy, ODI cricket’s secondary global tournament.
The player himself has already stated he would be up for a recall in a format he has not played since coming out of retirement for last year’s ill-fated World Cup in India.
How wise, though, is it to bring Stokes back into the ODI fold if he is already missing Test cricket through injury? Allowing him to play in the Hundred last summer was a major error from England.
They need to have a long, hard think about whether coaxing Stokes back to white-ball cricket is the right thing for the player and a team who are building towards a tournament – the 2027 World Cup – he is unlikely to be involved in.
Managing the workloads of their all-format players is already a difficult balancing act for England. Giving fast bowlers Mark Wood and Jofra Archer the best chance of being fit for next year’s Ashes will be difficult enough.
Adding Stokes into that mix when he could be preserved for Test cricket alone seems an unnecessary risk.
After sitting it out this year, it’s likely he will play the Indian Premier League next spring. Yet maybe he won’t? It would be a decision that might see him banned from playing in the tournament for the following two years under new regulations that have just been agreed by the Indians.
But a new England contract that will see Stokes earn more than £2million before it expires at the end of September 2026 should offer some consolation for a player who has previously landed IPL deals worth more than £1m on three occasions in recent years.
As for England, they have named their XI for the first Test. Ollie Pope again captains in Stokes’ absence as he did at the end of the summer, while there is a Test debut for Brydon Carse in a five-man bowling attack that includes Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir.
Conditions in this part of the country, where the temperature this weekend hit close to 40 degrees, is notoriously punishing on visiting teams. It should also be noted that of that quartet of bowlers, only Leach, the spinner recalled for the first time in nine months, has ever played in Pakistan before.
“I think it is really exciting for the lads to come out here and be exposed to these conditions for the first time,” said Stokes.
“It will show them how hard Test cricket can be. Coming to the sub-continent and Pakistan at the moment when it is high 30s and low 40C it takes character and we have a lot of characters in our dressing room who will be willing to stand up to the challenge of playing Test cricket out here.”
He may well be right, but it’s a shame they will not have their inspirational captain on the field to guide them through the challenge this week.
