London [UK], March 31 : England Test captain Ben Stokes will sit out the early stages of Durham's County Championship campaign as he continues to recover from hamstring surgery. However, head coach Ryan Campbell is confident that the all-rounder will be fully fit for England's summer fixtures, according to ESPNcricinfo.
Stokes, 33, has been rehabilitating after tearing his hamstring twice in six months, including an aggravation during England's final Test in New Zealand. He has not played since but recently shared a video on Instagram showing his progress, including a return to bowling.
England's Test summer begins on May 22 against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge, followed by a five-match series against India. With an Ashes tour to Australia looming, Stokes is prioritizing his recovery to withstand the demands of 11 Tests in eight months. He has already withdrawn from The Hundred, opting to rest after the India series before the Ashes begins in Perth on November 21.
Throughout his rehab, Stokes has spent time at Chester-le-Street, attending Durham's media day on Monday and performing shuttle runs on the outfield. He is one of three England players under Durham's watch, alongside Brydon Carse and Mark Wood. Carse is recovering from a left toe injury sustained during the Champions Trophy, while Wood recently had left knee surgery, ruling him out of England's Test summer.
With all three being key to England's plans--particularly for the Ashes--Campbell stressed that no risks would be taken.
"At this stage, they're probably not likely to play for us," he said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.
"My expectation is that it'll be zero - anything else is an added bonus," he added.
"They're all coming back from serious injuries. The facts are that they need to get up and running by the time the Test matches start," he noted.
Durham will play six Division One matches before the Zimbabwe Test, leaving the door open for Stokes to return in a later fixture if he feels ready.
"What we know about Stokesy is that he's here nearly every single day working his butt off. The guy had hamstring surgery and was lifting weights the next day, which I couldn't believe. He sets the bar, wherever he is," he said.
"He's such a hard-working bloke, and he'll do whatever it takes to be up and running for England, which is really exciting for England fans," he added.
"For Durham fans, if he happens to play a game or two along the way, great. If he doesn't, I know he'll be checking the scores and ringing me to tell me what we should and shouldn't be doing," he noted.
Campbell also urged caution with Carse's recurring landing foot issues, which forced him out of England's second Champions Trophy match against Australia. The 29-year-old has emerged as a crucial player across formats, particularly in Tests, where he took 27 wickets at an average of 19.85 in five matches against Pakistan and New Zealand.
"I think Brydon Carse is probably the number one priority for England right now," said Campbell, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.
"With what he's shown in Test cricket, he's born for that sort of stuff. There's 11 Tests over the summer and winter, and I think he's going to be number one on England's list to make sure that he's ready to go for that," he added.
"We've known about his foot problems for a year now. It's not new, but he needs to get it right if he's going to be playing a lot of Test cricket," he noted.