Ben Stokes to play against Sri Lanka despite injury? Captain's presence in training session sparks rumors

England National Cricket Team Test captain Ben Stokes has been credited highly for the turnaround of the team in the longest format of the game. Under his leadership the Three Lions have been sensational in the format, winning games both at home as well as overseas.

Under his captaincy, England started the summed of 2024 on high. They defeated West Indies National Cricket Team by the margin of 3-0. The hosts are now all set to lock horns with Sri Lanka National Cricket Team in the three-match Test series, which will be the second series of the summer.

The Test series between the England National Cricket Team and the Sri Lanka National Cricket Team will begin on Tuesday (21st August) at the Old Trafford in Manchester. The second game of the series is scheduled to take place from August 29 while the last game of the series will be played at The Oval from September 6.

Ahead of the Test series, England faced a massive blow as skipper Stokes was ruled out of the entire series. The all-rounder sustained the injury playing in the Hundred for Northern Superchargers against Manchester Originals. He clutched his hamstring while trying to take the quick single.

Stokes was down on the floor and then had to be helped on the field and returned to the team dugout with crutches. The scans further revealed that his injury was serious and not just the Sri Lanka Tests, he won't be able to play the entire English summer.

Ben Stokes joins up with the Test squad in Manchester to help advise the team ahead of the series opener

In the absence of Ben Stokes, the England National Cricket Team appointed Ollie Pope as Test captain of the team for the series against the Sri Lanka National Cricket Team. The right-hander is the vice-captain of the team and would be keen to start his captaincy tenure on high.

As the England National Cricket Team got into the groove for the first Test against Sri Lanka, skipper Ben Stokes made sure that he made his presence felt. The all-rounder joined up with the Test squad in Manchester to help the team ahead of the series opener.

Not only just Ben Stokes, England will also be without the services of Zak Crawley. The opening batter will be missing the series due to the fractured right little finger, an injury which he sustained during the third game of the Test series against West Indies National Cricket Team.

In his absence, Dan Lawrence will be opening the innings in the three-match series against Sri Lanka. This will be the first time he will be opening the innings. He has played 11 Tests and has scored four fifties with a best of 91, but all has come batting in the middle order.

England also have announced their playing XI for the first Test. The team has Harry Brook as the vice-captain. In the absence of Ben Stokes and Zak Crawley, Matthew Potts and Dan Lawrence have been included in the XI.