Overview
- Durham head coach Ryan Campbell said Saturday that Stokes will sit out the opener and is pencilled in for Worcestershire on May 8 and Kent at Beckenham on May 15.
- The England captain broke his cheekbone in February when a ball hit by academy player Robbie Bowman struck his face in the nets, and he later said his surgery was successful.
- Durham are waiting for specialists to clear him to play, so he is expected to miss early fixtures against Gloucestershire, Lancashire and Middlesex.
- If he returns only in May, those two outings could be his only red-ball games for Durham before England’s first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s on June 4.
- To build match fitness, Stokes has opted out of The Hundred and plans to play in the 50-over Metro Bank One-Day Cup after a layoff that began with the Ashes in January.