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Ben Stokes in pain (Source: AFP Photos)
In a significant development, England Test captain Ben Stokes decided on Sunday to withdraw from the cricket match he was part of.
Stokes, who was in the news due to an infamous nightclub incident, returned to play for his English county side, Durham. However, in the middle of Durham’s County Championship match against Northamptonshire, he decided not to participate any further at the Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street.
ECB Makes Special Request To Durham Over Ben Stokes
As confirmed by the county side, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) made a request to Durham for Ben Stokes. The decision, in all likelihood, was taken with the third Test between England and New Zealand in mind, which begins on June 25 at Trent Bridge.
To replace Stokes, Durham brought out Colin Ackermann, the Dutch international, in their playing XI against Northamptonshire.
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Stokes bowled 25 overs for Durham in their match against Northamptonshire, conceding 80 runs for his only wicket, that of George Bartlett. With the bat, he was more impressive, making 95 runs off 118 balls with the help of 18 boundaries.
Earlier, there were multiple reports that Stokes would return to England's playing XI for the Trent Bridge Test against New Zealand. He, along with Gus Atkinson, was suspended from the second Test between the two sides after getting involved in the London nightclub saga.
Durham Vs Northamptonshire So Far
Northamptonshire, batting first, made 450 on the board, with Ricardo Vasconcelos top-scoring with a majestic 187. While Stokes did not do much with the ball, Ben Raine and Matthew Potts took three wickets each. Will Rhodes, Callum Parkinson and Ben McKinney had a wicket apiece.
In reply, Durham reached 302/7 at stumps. Still, a lot of cricket is left in the Durham Vs Northamptonshire County Championship match.
So far, Ben Sanderson and Harry Conway have shared seven wickets between them, while the others are yet to get a single wicket in the innings for Northamptonshire.
What's Happening In England Vs New Zealand 2nd Test?
In the absence of Ben Stokes, Joe Root, England’s leader with the most matches as Test captain, took the charge against New Zealand in the second Test, which is taking place at The Lord’s.
New Zealand are 391 and 362 in their innings, with centuries from Henry Nicholls and Glenn Phillips helping the team post commanding totals. England, on the other hand, have fifties from Emilio Gay and Matthew Fisher in the first innings, which powered them to reach 291.
However, in the second innings, England are in trouble, batting on 182/5. They still need 281 runs to pull off a miraculous win.
Meanwhile, Joe Root is still in the middle, batting on 75*. He is at the crease alongside Jordan Cox, who is yet to get off the mark.
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