Follow UsChennai Super Kings (CSK) have confirmed that England Test skipper Ben Stokes, their most expensive signing at the mini auction (INR 16.25 crore), has left the franchise’s camp to prepare for England’s upcoming home summer, which will start with a one-off Test against Ireland on June 1st. The Lord’s Test vs Ireland will be succeeded by The Ashes, which will kick off on June 16th at Edgbaston.
Stokes entered IPL 2023 with a lot of hype — due to both his price tag and his accomplishments in the year gone by — but the 31-year-old’s maiden season with CSK turned out to be an injury-plagued one, with the England Test skipper making all of two appearances.
Stokes featured in each of the Super Kings’ first two matches (vs GT in Ahmedabad and LSG at Chepauk) but a toe injury ruled him out of the following few games. The all-rounder was supposed to return to action towards the end of April, but head coach Stephen Fleming revealed that the England captain ‘suffered a setback’ that set his return back by a few more weeks. Stokes was managing an already-existing knee injury heading into the competition and, as it turned out, he took no further part after the first two games, the encounter vs LSG on April 3 proving to be his final appearance of the season.
In the two matches, Stokes bowled a solitary over — where he conceded 18 — and posted scores of 7(6) and 8(8).
CSK, however, have coped remarkably well without Stokes, and on Saturday confirmed their spot in not just the playoffs, but Qualifier 1. Next stop for the Super Kings: a date with first-placed Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 at Chepauk on Tuesday, May 23rd.