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Ben Stokes (Source: X)
Ben Stokes, England's red-ball captain, has been out of practice sessions due to a hamstring injury he suffered during The Hundred and was out of the 2-match Test series against Sri Lanka. However, he was seen practising in the nets on Saturday before the upcoming series against Pakistan. Now, the news of his return hasn't been made official yet, but the practice session speaks a lot about his injury.
England will travel to Pakistan in October to play a Test series, which will be held during the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 cycle. Hence, it's an important series for both teams. It's good for the English team now that Ben Stokes is recovering speedily. The pitches in Pakistan would be tricky, and an experienced batter would be needed to handle the pressure in the middle.
🚨 BREAKING NEWS 🚨
— England's Barmy Army 🏴🎺 (@TheBarmyArmy) August 24, 2024
Ben Stokes is back in the nets, just two weeks after tearing his hamstring.
Keep going Ben 💪#ENGvSL pic.twitter.com/ShNmJ7LOhE
Currently, England is busy playing the 1st Test match against Sri Lanka and seems to be struggling in front of the Sri Lankan batters. On day 4, the visitors are thrashing the bowlers and have taken the lead by 169 runs. This isn't a good sign for the hosts, as they can't afford to lose any single game if they want to play the WTC Finals.
Magnificent batting performance by Kamindu Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal
When Sri Lanka came in to bat in the first innings, it didn't seem like they'd get a chance to smash the English bowlers in the second innings. It was a rather flop show by the batters in the first innings, as they scored 236 runs. In return, England scored 358 runs, thanks to Jamie Smith's 111 runs. The 24-year-old batter impressed the cricket community with his brilliant strokeplay and confidence on the field.
However, in an exciting turn of events, the Sri Lankan batters have taken charge and are leading by 169 runs on day 4 with four wickets to spare. Kamindu Mendis scored a century, while Dinesh Chandimal scored a magnificent half-century. Both the batters are looking well-settled and are troubling the hosts. If they manage to score more than 100 runs, the game will be over for England.