Slimline Stokes makes impression with pair of wickets on red-ball return

To little fanfare, Ben Stokes has slipped out of the shorter formats. His last one-day international was at the 2023 World Cup, his last Twenty20 international helped England win its equivalent a year earlier. His most recent white-ball match of any description came during the Hundred in 2024, a tournament he has since shouldered arms to.

Red-ball cricket is the thing that gets the England captain’s juices flowing these days and had he not fractured his cheekbone in the nets back in February, the plan was to be available for Durham from the start of the season. Fair play, given the additional money he could earn by diversifying in his final years.

Belatedly returning against Worcestershire at New Road on Friday, Stokes needed only eight deliveries to make an impact. Not quite who-writes-your-scripts territory at one of Ian Botham’s old haunts but a tidy bit of work all the same, Stokes getting some extra bounce to tickle the edge of Dan Lategan’s backfoot drive.

It was the first of two wickets for Stokes in his first outing since the Ashes as Worcestershire struggled to 163 for six by 6pm on a rain-affected day. The second came late when, with a rainbow over the cathedral in the distance, he bowled Adam Hose for 59 with a beauty that shaped to swing away before nipping back in.

Under the watchful eye of England’s lead physio, Ben Davies, Stokes sent down 14 overs across three spells and looked sharp with it; the quickest on show, certainly, and even more svelte than usual. Some players pile on the pounds when sidelined by injury – Stokes prefers to pound away on a treadmill.

Notable also was the fact that, in his first County Championship match for Durham in nearly two years, Stokes started out with the new ball.

This was in part due to Matthew Potts resting after a heavy workload in the opening rounds and Duanne Olivier not being ready after arriving to replace the injured Kemar Roach. But there is a world in which this is relevant to England as thoughts turn towards the three-Test series against New Zealand in June.

Marcus North is expected to be confirmed as the new selector in the coming days – Durham’s director of cricket was not seen at New Road – and one option could be to see whether Stokes is interested in a late-career switch to opening bowler.

There is clearly a vacancy here, given this will be England’s first home summer for 20 years without one of Jimmy Anderson, Stuart Broad or Chris Woakes to turn to. Hence the early season sounding out of the previously untrusted Ollie Robinson and similar encouragement for Sam Cook after that solitary Test cap last year.