Ben Stokes also bowled a handful of overs in India in March this year (AP)
Ben Stokes picked up five wickets on his County Championship return for Durham during their Division One game against Lancashire at Blackpool’s Stanley Park. The all-rounder, who also bowled a handful of overs during England’s fifth Test match against hosts India in March this year, sent down 38 overs in the match against Lancashire, including 20 in the second innings.
After dismissing opener Luke Wells, Stokes demolished Lancashire’s lower-order to finish with figures of 5-98.
Ben Stokes picks five on full-fledged bowling return
Ben Stokes, who suffered a knee injury last year, underwent a surgery back in November 2023 shortly after playing the ODI World Cup in India. While the all-rounder was advised not to bowl for a while, the cricketer did send down a few overs during the last Test match of England’s 2024 tour of India.
As of May, it seems like Ben Stokes has regained full fitness considering he bowled 38 overs for Durham on his County Championship return. The 33-year-old all-rounder even picked up five wickets during the second innings at Blackpool, which included the prized scalp of Lancashire captain and well-set centurion Keaton Jennings.
Lancashire’s number nine Tom Aspinwall became the fifth victim of Ben Stokes during the halfway stage of Day 3, when the tailender miscued the speedster’s short delivery to be caught near boundary.
Even though Ben Stokes claimed five wickets in the second innings to finish with a seven-wicket match haul, Lancashire still hold a firm grip in their Division One clash against the visiting Durham team.
After claiming a 121-run first innings lead, Lancashire declared at 353-9 on Day 3 to set Durham a huge 475-run target. In response, the visitors reached stumps at 134-3 from 33 overs, still finding themselves 341 runs away from the target.
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