England all-rounder Ben Stokes on Saturday (July 17) revealed that his left index finger has healed structurally, but the pain was just ridiculous and he played with the terrible pain throughout the recent ODI series against Pakistan at home because his team needed him.
Stokes recently underwent surgery on his left index finger that he had fractured in mid-April while playing for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL 2021). Originally, the all-rounder wasn’t part of the ODI squad for the three-match series against Pakistan, but he had to return to national duty after the COVID-19 outbreak inside the England camp.
Well, the all-rounder led the second-string England side brilliantly, as the hosts secured a 3-0 ODI series win over Pakistan last week at home. He said he would have never ever played with such pain if England didn’t need him for the Pakistan ODIs, saying he took an injection to ease the finger pain.
Stokes wrote for Daily Mirror: “It was a totally unexpected set of games for me and the truth is I would never have played under normal circumstances due to how much pain I was in with my left index finger. The surgery was a success after I had broken it at the IPL, but it was still so painful.”
He added in his column, “Sometimes though you just have to grin and bear it, and captaining England is one of those reasons. The finger has healed structurally, but the pain was just ridiculous for where it should be so that is why I have now had an injection to ease it for the rest of the summer.”
On the break given by England, the all-rounder said: “I've got a bit of a break now, which should give the steroids time to take effect and allow me to play pain-free in the Hundred and then against India. Hopefully, my finger won't be a problem by the time the India Test series comes around, because that is a huge series and one we are all desperate to perform well in.”
Meanwhile, England skipper Eoin Mogan hailed Stokes by saying: “He dug us out of a huge hole coming back early from his injury and I think leading the way he did is a huge compliment to the leader he is within our side, how mature he has been as a leader and now a captain. We gave him every chance to be fit.”
He signed off by saying, “He has not played a lot of cricket and he's had some R and R [rest and relaxation] at home and feels quite fresh. The finger has not come along as he and the medical team would have liked, so it is important it is as good as it can be for the Test matches against India.”
(With ANI Inputs)
