Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad. PHoto- Getty
Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad. PHoto- Getty

Ben Stokes and his former England teammate Stuart Broad got into a banter over the England Test captain bowling long spells for his county Durham in the ongoing County Championship.

Over the last year, Stokes has been confined to the role of a specialist batter due to a chronic knee injury, with the England Test captain scheduled to undergo surgery following the 2023 World Cup. In England’s final Test in India, he bowled for the first time since the Lord’s Ashes Test in June last year, taking Rohit Sharma out with his first delivery.

After opting out of the IPL 2024 to prepare for a return to all-rounder status, Stokes has emerged as a crucial member of Durham’s assault in recent weeks.

Ben Stokes withdrew from the T20 World Cup 2024 selection in April, citing the necessity to bowl regularly in Test matches during the home summer.

The seam-bowling all-rounder played an important role in England’s T20 World Cup 2022 final against Pakistan, scoring an undefeated 52 to assist the team win by five wickets. England became only the second side, after the West Indies, to win the T20 World Cup twice.

Ben Stokes stop bowling 10 overs spells with a dodgy knee: Stuart Broad

Stokes suffered a knee injury at the start of 2023 for which he also underwent surgery earlier this year before the Test tour of India. The 32-year-old didn’t bowl during the five-Test series until the final game in Dharamsala.

However, Ben Stokes has returned to bowling longer spells for his county Durham. He took five wickets in his side’s tight defeat to Lancashire, followed by four wickets in each innings to skittle Somerset for 171 and 88, with Durham prevailing by an innings despite only scoring 265.

Stokes came into the second innings with Somerset on 29-2 and bowled 10 overs unaltered to lead his team to victory.

Broad, who retired from Test cricket at the end of the 2023 Ashes, credited Stokes as having the “heart of a lion”, but encouraged him to be careful with his workload.

“Hi Ben. Love you & you have a heart of a lion. Please stop bowling 10 overs spells with a dodgy knee…,” Broad commented on an ESPNCricinfo video post.

The England Test captain hit back: “F**k off Stuart what dodgy knee.”

Meanwhile, the star all-rounder grabbed four wickets in Somerset’s first innings, which finished at 171. However, the left-hander recorded a six-ball duck in Durham’s first-inning total of 265, while Somerset only managed 88 after batting second.

Also read: IPL 2024: SRH Captain Pat Cummins One Win Away To Match MS Dhoni’s Elusive Captaincy Record