NZ vs Eng, 3rd Test – Ben Stokes leaves the field with a recurrence of hamstring injury

On By Littum

Ben Stokes was forced off the field during day three of England’s third Test against New Zealand at Seddon Park after a recurrence of a left hamstring injury. He will have a scan tonight to understand the full extent of the damage.

The England captain stepped up off the second ball of the 56th over of New Zealand’s second innings – his 13th and third of the day – on Monday afternoon and immediately felt the back of his left thigh after delivering a bouncer which Rachin Ravindra pulled in four. It was the same hamstring he tore in August while batting for Northern Superchargers against Manchester Originals in the men’s Hundred, which kept him out for two months.

Bowling from the City End, Stokes put his hand on his face and proceeded to walk towards the team’s dressing room away at the newly renamed Tim Southee End. New Zealand were leading by 409 at the time when left-arm spinner Jacob Bethell finished the over.

An ECB update on tea said Stokes will not return to the field in New Zealand’s second innings while receiving treatment, with a further assessment to be made on whether he will bat. England ended the day 18 for 2, chasing a mammoth 658, although they have already clinched the series after wins in the first two Tests.

“It’s the same hamstring he’s had before,” England assistant coach Marcus Trescothick confirmed. “He has been doing so well, bowling and playing the role he does as an all-rounder and captain.

“We didn’t see it coming, you have no signs of things like that… generally they just happen.”

Stokes’ 36.2 overs in Hamilton was the most he has bowled for in a Test since 40 at Trent Bridge in 2022 (also against New Zealand). On day one, his 23 overs were the most he has managed in a single day, at eight, eight and seven times. It is worth noting that England’s first innings capitulation for 143 meant their seamers had just 34.5 overs rest after 97.1 between them for New Zealand’s opening effort. The hosts went ahead in their second innings and kept England in the field for 101.4 overs, eventually ending up on 453.

This series has brought Stoke seven dismissals at 36.85 from 66.1 overs – his most as captain – accompanied by a batting average of 52.66 over four innings. After struggling to effectively fulfill the all-rounder role, this series had been a welcome return to the Stokes of old.

It was only the previous evening (Sunday) that assistant coach Paul Collingwood hailed Stokes’ return as a talismanic all-rounder. After today’s events, Trescothick stated that Stokes may have to tailor his bowling numbers going forward.

“I still think he’s shown signs during this series that when he gets back to fitness he’s going to have that level. Maybe it’s a case of you controlling his bowling volumes and he’s not bowling the volume that which he has potentially bowled in this game.

“Injuries happen, don’t they? they’re always going to be part of the game. he’s working dramatically well on his conditioning. to try to get into the shape he can be. He bowled 24 in the first innings and he bowled quite a few pieces in this (second) innings (12.2 overs). We will have to see how we manage.”

Stokes looked understandably crestfallen when he left, having only just overcome the physical and psychological wear and tear of the first hamstring tear which derailed his return to full fitness in the summer.

Arriving in the domestic summer following successful knee surgery in October 2023, he bowled 49 overs across three Tests against the West Indies, with five wickets taking him past 200 career dismissals. The tear subsequently set him back, ruling him out of the three-match series against Sri Lanka at the end of the season and the first Test of the Pakistan tour.

Stokes returned for the last two matches of that series, but England lost both, succumbing to a 2–1 defeat after winning the first Test. He admitted that his quest to regain full fitness caused him to “physically drain and destroy himself”. When the squad assembled in Queenstown at the start of the series, Stokes apologized for the negative effect he had on the team environment.

Before this final test, Stokes was optimistic he was in a good place with a better understanding of his body.

“I have to work that much harder on the physical side of the job to allow me to go out and do my job, but I got a good amount of overs over the last two games and I’m more confident on getting through a lot of spells in a day.

“That’s where I got to before I pulled my hamstring. I bowled well in the summer, had a setback but now feel out of it and worry about something else happening again. As you get older, you think a little more about your body, but I work harder because I have to.”

Now the 33-year-old will undergo another rehabilitation period. England’s next Test match is not until May 22 against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge, but a lucrative £800,000 deal with MI Cape Town in the SA20, which begins on January 9, may have to be foregone. Having signed a two-year central contract in October, the ECB have the power to withdraw him outright from the tournament, even if he is able to regain fitness before the end of the group stage, with MI’s final match on 2 February.

This latest setback also complicates any future white-ball return for Stokes. The man himself has been tight-lipped about whether he will make himself available for the upcoming Champions Trophy, with Test head coach Brendon McCullum taking control of the limited-overs squads. Now the decision may have been made for him.

Vithushan Ehantharajah is Associate Editor at ESPNcricinfo