Playing on a used wicket made comeback decision a little bit easier: Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes has returned to the England playing XI after an injury layoff. He contracted a hamstring tear during The Hundred 2024 and subsequently missed the three-match Test series against Sri Lanka at home. He was expected to come back in the first Test against Pakistan in Multan but eventually missed out as England went out to win the game by 47 runs and an inning.

Both teams will tussle at the same venue and on the same pitch in the second Test too. Stokes who has also got back to his captaincy regime, added that the impending Test being played in the same conditions and deck made his comeback decision easier. It is worth noting that, the Multan pitch came under the scanner for its flat deck as runs galore in the first Test.

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‘To be honest, playing on a used wicket made the decision a little bit easier. But you like to think that this is going to spin a bit more. We’ve got two workhorses in the team in Carsey and Pottsy who just keep going and going. But I’m available to bowl and when I sense the time is right for me to come on and make an impact there won’t be any doubts in my mind,” said Stokes as quoted by Mail Online.

Stokes could potentially seen bowling in second Test

Other than Stokes, England have brought back Matthew Pott, who played last for England against Sri Lanka in the Lord’s Test. Subsequently, they have dropped Gus Atkinson and Chris Woakes in a bid to cater to the expected spinning conditions. Stokes added that, featuring as a specialist batter was the first thought but also hinted at potentially rolling his arm over.

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‘Those were the sort of thoughts that went through my head at home before we came out. I’d written a few teams down with me not bowling and it just didn’t work,” he added.