Stokes confident on knee for Adelaide
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Ben Stokes has given the strongest sign yet he can be a factor with the ball for England in Adelaide, insistent his knee injury can be easily managed.
Stokes emerged as one of England’s biggest concerns out of their series-opening loss at the Gabba, after jarring his knee in the field and being in obvious discomfort.
The 30-year-old is crucial to the tourists’ balance, as well as a decision on whether they play under-fire spinner Jack Leach.
Leach did not play during the English home summer when Stokes was not available and offering a fourth-seamer option, and the same would be likely if England do not trust his knee.
But after bowling just 12 of England’s 110 overs at the Gabba, Stokes played down the injury in his column for English newspaper The Mirror on Tuesday.
“People will have seen me rubbing my knee from time to time when I was in the field, but rest assured I’m fine,” he wrote.
“It is an old injury that flares up every now and again, but I know how to manage it.
“It just gets a little bit uncomfortable every now and again in and around my cartilage.
“But it just looks worse than it is by the way I try and get off it as soon as I can.”
Stokes was among England’s first batsmen in the Adelaide Oval nets at training on Tuesday, and appeared to be moving freely.
It comes with England under pressure headed into the day-night Test, where Australia are unbeaten with the pink ball.
England have also not come back to win the Ashes in Australia after losing the first Test since 1954-55, highlighting the task ahead of them to turn things around.
“We have a good track record of bouncing back pretty well after a defeat early in a series,” Stokes wrote.
“We came back against South Africa to win, we came back against the West Indies last year to win, so we’ve done it before and we can do it again.”
