Ben Stokes begins bowling in nets

Picture Credit: Twitter/@benstokes38

England's star all-rounder Ben Stokes has stepped up his recovery after recuperating from a finger injury he sustained in April in the first leg of IPL 2021. Stokes has been out of action since July as he decided to take an indefinite break from cricket to prioritise mental health and also focus on recovering from the troublesome finger injury.

The swashbuckling all-rounder posted a video of him bowling during an indoor training session on social media. Few days back, the 30-year old had shared a video of him batting during a private batting session at indoor nets. Stokes recently revealed that he had been able to hold a bat properly for the first time in six months.

Stokes had captioned his post, “It’s casual clothes training on a Thursday… Generally my first ball back and this is what happened. Then a bit of making sure I don’t break my toe. Then eventually hit a nice one. Great to be back hitting balls.”

Watch the video here:

 

After undergoing surgery, Stokes attempted a comeback in the summer and also captained a second-string England side in an ODI series win over Pakistan. However, he later revealed that he was in "ridiculous pain" throughout the series and has not played for England since. Stokes then underwent a second surgery on his injured finger and his recovery has been going well after the second operation.

Notably, Stokes isn’t part of the England Ashes squad announced earlier this month, which will take on Australia in five Tests later this year. But if the all-rounder can regain full fitness in the upcoming months, he might be added to the England squad for the Ashes. Stokes' latest video has sparked hopes among the England fans that he could be included in England's squad.

The Ashes series will begin on December 8 in Australia.