Ben Stokes has been ruled out of all cricket for at least three months with a torn left hamstring. The England captain suffered the injury during the third Test against New Zealand in Hamilton, where his side won the series 2-1.Earlier this week, Stokes was not named in England's 15-man squad for next year's Champions Trophy owing to his injury. He last played the 50-over format in the 2023 World Cup.
An hour after the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed that their Test skipper, Ben Stokes, was sidelined for "at least three months" with a reoccuring hamstring injury, the all-rounder came up with a powrful reaction on social media.Stokes said he has "so much more left in the tank" and promised to give "more blood and sweat" for his team as he has a "Phoenix permanently inked" on his body. "Something else to overcome…go on then!!!!!!!! I’ve got so much more left in this tank and so much more blood sweat and tears to go through for my team and this shirt. There’s a reason I have a Phoenix permanently inked on my body. See you on the field to f*** some shit up," Stokes wrote on X.
The 33-year-old all-rounder had already been ruled out of next year's Champions Trophy one-day international tournament in Pakistan and the preceding white-ball tour of India. Further assessments have since revealed the full extent of the injury, with Stokes set to undergo surgery in January, said an England and Wales Cricket Board statement. Stokes suffered the injury while bowling during the third Test against New Zealand in Hamilton last week. Stokes did not bat in the second innings of that match as England slumped to a 423-run defeat -- a result that meant his side still won a three-match series 2-1.He previously missed this year's home series against Sri Lanka and the first Test in Pakistan after tearing the hamstring on the same left leg in August while batting for Northern Superchargers against Manchester Originals in the men's Hundred.