Ben Stokes to play in first India Test even though it finishes day before his court case

Ben Stokes will play in the first Test against India even though it could finish just 24 hours before the start of his court case. Stokes has been backed by Joe Root, the Test captain, to remain focused on cricket and not be distracted during the first Test. If the Test at Edgbaston lasts the full five days, it will not ­finish until Aug 5, the day before Stokes is due to answer charges of affray at Bristol Crown Court.

England could have decided to leave Stokes out for the first two Tests, given that he will miss the second at Lord’s to be in court. But Root wants his strongest XI on the field and, if he is fit, Stokes will be named in the squad when it is ­announced next Thursday.

“No, we are going to pick our best team and make sure we go into that series with the strongest squad. If Ben’s fit to play, he’ll be up for selection,” said Root. “He loves playing cricket, he loves being out there, you can see when he’s on a cricket field he’s fully engaged with what’s going on. He wants the ball all the time. He wants to be involved in what’s happening and I’m sure that will be exactly the same throughout that game.”

England insisted at Headingley on Tuesday that Stokes was fit despite looking as if he was troubled by a leg injury in the outfield. He was not required to bat in the victory over India, giving him more time to rest, but he will play for Durham in the Vitality Blast on Friday night and in the County Championship against Gloucestershire next week in Cheltenham.

Stokes missed the last Test against Pakistan with a torn hamstring and was replaced by Sam Curran, who took five wickets for the Lions against India A at Worcester on Wednesday, where he exploited cloudy, swinging conditions.

Chris Woakes looked back to full fitness, bowling sharply for his two for 28 off 13 overs and believes he will be ready to play in the first Test against India after five weeks out with knee and thigh injuries. India A were cruising at 189 for four, with Test batsmen Ajinkya Rahane and Rishabh Pant looking comfortable before Woakes and Curran started to find some movement. India A lost six wickets for eight runs to be bowled out for 197.

England did not enforce the follow-on, instead batting on, with Dawid Malan scoring 56 to take his match tally to 140 and Olly Pope strengthened his growing reputation with an unbeaten fifty. 

Malan is certain to be in the squad and Thursday’s final day will be of more relevance for Test selection with Jack Leach and Dominic Bess trying to bowl the Lions to victory. 

Both are vying for a place in the squad and will be watched by selectors Ed Smith and James Taylor. ­India A were 11 for three at the close, as Test opener Murali Vijay was bowled for nought by Jamie Porter. 

It has been a good workout for England, with Alastair Cook making a first-innings century, Malan playing well and Woakes stepping up his return.

Root’s two hundreds to lead England from 1-0 down to a 2-1 Royal London one-day series win over India quietened concerns over his form going into the Test series, and the way he learnt to read and adapt against left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav set the template for others to follow. The development of the Test team is some way behind that of the one-day side, with consistent heavy scoring absent for several years. Kuldeep has been named in the India squad for the first three Tests along with spinners Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. The India series is the start of six months of batting against spin, with tours to Sri Lanka and the Caribbean this winter.

Root did not use the Merlyn bowling machine to help prepare facing Kuldeep, instead relying on his own knowledge to find a method. 

“One thing that’s been really good about this one-day group is the attitude to learning and developing, and is something we are trying really hard to replicate within the Test team,” he said. “One thing we are trying to instill in this group is we’ve got to keep improving. We’ve got to find windows within a summer, within a series, to work on things and look ahead and make sure we’re ready for different surfaces, to make sure we are ready if it spins a little bit earlier in the game – when we get to Sri Lanka for example, we are ready for those surfaces as well.”