England captain Ben Stokes has exuded confidence about resuming his responsibility as an all-rounder when the English team will start their home season with a Test match against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge from May 22. Stokes picked up a hamstring injury during England’s final Test against New Zealand at Seddon Park played in December 2024. He underwent a surgery in January to get rid of the issue and now, after four months, he is geared up to lead the English team in the upcoming home season (2025-26). Recently, Stokes spoke to Sky Sports and discussed his fitness and role in the team.
“In terms of my role as a player, that full seamer, batting at six, trying to dominate every situation I find myself, whether I've got a bat or ball in my hand, is what I want to get back doing out on the field, on the biggest stage. I know I've done it before, it's something I've very confident in myself I can do," said Stokes on handling the responsibility of an all-rounder.
Talking about his fitness, Ben Stokes claimed that he works diligently and also took a vow to increase his level of fitness. "I always work hard. My ethos when I'm injured is I come back fitter than I was before I got injured. I've worked incredibly hard on all aspects of everything, from my cricket to fitness, and know I'm going to be in a position when I am back on the field to potentially be in physically the best possible shape I have been in," added Stokes.
England will look to give a tough time to India in the upcoming Test series
England’s biggest challenge will be to prevent Team India from winning the Test series on English soil after 18 years. India will begin their campaign against Ben Stokes and his men on June 20, with the opening Test to be played in Leeds. India, who didn’t have a decent campaign in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, will be eager to beat England.
However, the task won’t be simple for the two-time World Test Championship (WTC) finalists as the English team were in red-hot form in their last away series against New Zealand. In the three-match Test series against the Kiwi side down under, the English team registered a 2-1 win.
