Talismanic England all-rounder Ben Stokes will undergo knee surgery after the 2023 ODI World Cup ends, in his endeavour to regain full fitness before the start of the five-match Test series in India from January 25 next year. (ENG vs AUS Preview | Scorecard | Streaming)
Speaking ahead of the England vs Australia game in Ahmedabad, Stokes said: "I will hopefully be fine for the Test series against India. I am having surgery after the World Cup. There was a lot of time put into deciding when to get it done. The India Test series, which we start at the end of January, I should be fine to go by then."
The England Test captain has been battling the knee issue for the last 18 months, and has been playing as a specialist batter at the ongoing Cricket World Cup. Stokes has not bowled a single ball in a competitive match in any format since July 1, which was the fourth day of the second Ashes Test at Lord's. He had initially planned to go for the surgery after the Ashes series, but eventually decided to come out of retirement to play in the showpiece 50-over World Cup.
When asked if he plans to take part in next year's IPL or the T20 World Cup after that, Stokes evaded a clear response. "Look, we've got three games left here in the World Cup and then a huge series against India. That's where everything is at, at the moment," he said.
He did not reveal any details of the surgery either. "When we go to those meetings we generally take a physio and doctor and they start talking. I just turn up, go to sleep, wake up and hope it is better." Stokes, however, added that he expects the operation to help him get back to bowling at full steam.
"There's obviously something that needs to be operated on. It's been a big hindrance on me, and affected what I can do for the team. Obviously being an allrounder is what I want to be doing. You'd hope that it means that I can get back to doing what I've been known for, which is playing a role as a batter, and playing a role as a bowler as well."
