Ben Stokes set to join Mumbai Indians franchise for a mouth-watering deal
Published - 19 Jul 2024, 09:22 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:16 AM
England star Ben Stokes is reportedly set to sign up for MI Cape Town to ply his trade in the next edition of the SA20, South Africa's premier franchise league.
SA20 was launched in 2023 with a total of six teams. All the teams are currently owned by the Indian Premier League owners. MI Cape Town is the partner team of the Mumbai Indians franchise, owned by the Ambanis.
According to a report in The Telegraph, Ben Stokes could be seen playing for the Cape Town-based franchise in the third edition of the SA20. The report stated that the England Test captain has been offered up to £800,000 (approx. INR 8.65 crore) to play in the competition next January.
While Ben Stokes has stayed away from T20s in recent times, he is still one of the best all-rounders in the world. He recently resumed bowling regularly which makes him even more valuable. Part of the England team that won the T20 World Cup in 2022, the veteran allrounder has also enjoyed success in the IPL where he was named the MVP in 2017.
Ben Stokes to miss India series:
The report further stated that if Ben Stokes signs up for MI Cape Town, he is set to play the entire SA20 and will miss the 5-match T20I series against India. However, the England Test captain is not currently involved in England’s T20 side after ruling himself out of the T20 World Cup last month to focus on the Test season.
Stokes could play the ODI series against India in February if he remains in England's plans for the Champions Trophy. In that case, he could miss a few games in SA20. Talking about his T20 stats, Ben Stokes has played 43 T20Is so far and has picked up 26 wickets in addition to scoring more than 500 runs.
At present, he is busy leading England in the ongoing three-match Test series against West Indies. England won the first Test by an innings and 114 runs to take the lead in the series. England are eyeing their first Test series win since 2022 and would be backing themselves to beat West Indies in the ongoing assignment.
