England all-rounder and Test captain Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the upcoming three-Tests series against Sri Lanka after tearing his hamstring during the ongoing Hundred tournament. In his absence, Ollie Pope will captain the side in the Sri Lanka Test series.
Ben Stokes sustained the injury while competing in the Hundred for the Northern Superchargers against the Manchester Originals on Sunday.
Called through for a short single early in the Superchargers’ pursuit, Ben Stokes pulled up injured after finishing the run, then fell to the floor clutching his left leg. He required assistance on the field and returned to the team dugout using crutches.
A scan on Tuesday revealed the extent of the injury, and Stokes will be unable to play in the forthcoming three-match Test series against Sri Lanka, which begins on August 21 in Manchester.
Ben Stokes out of the English summer
“As a result of the scans conducted in Leeds on Tuesday, Stokes will miss England’s three-match Test series against Sri Lanka,” the England and Wales Cricket Board announced in a release on Tuesday (August 13).
Ben Stokes is hoping to return for England’s tour of Pakistan, scheduled to be played in early October. England’s next assignment, the Test series against Sri Lanka is set to begin on August 21 at Old Trafford.
Ollie Pope to captain England against Sri Lanka in upcoming Test series
Ollie Pope, who has been England’s test vice-captain since last year, will assume full captaincy duties for the series against Sri Lanka.
England has chosen not to select a substitute for Stokes in their team to face Sri Lanka. In his absence, Jordan Cox will be in contention to make his Test debut as a specialist batter at No. 6. Alternatively, they might improve the team’s balance by shifting Jamie Smith and Chris Woakes up to Nos. 6 and 7, respectively, and selecting an extra seamer in Matthew Potts or Olly Stone.
Pope has only captained Surrey in one first-class match, against Glamorgan in September 2021, however, he did take over for their 2024 Vitality Blast campaign while usual skipper Chris Jordan was away with England at the T20 World Cup.
He has previously captained England XIs in warm-up matches in the UAE ahead of the 2022 Pakistan tour, as well as in New Zealand in early 2023.
Stokes is scheduled to join the rest of the squad in Manchester this weekend, as planned, and it is believed he will aim to be present for every day of the series, which includes two Tests in London.
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