Ben Stokes recalled by England for India opener

London: Durham all-rounder Ben Stokes was recalled by England as the selectors named a 13-man squad on Wednesday for next week’s first Test against India at Trent Bridge.

Stokes was the only addition to the 12-man party chosen for England’s recent 1-0 loss in a two-Test series at home to Sri Lanka.

The 23-year-old Stokes was not chosen for that short campaign while he regained full fitness following an embarrassingly self-inflicted wrist injury. So angry was Stokes at being dismissed for a golden duck against the West Indies in Barbados, he punched a dressing room locker at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown and promptly broke a bone in his hand.

That forced him to miss the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh and the start of the English season.

However, Stokes has already shown his ability at international level by providing England with a rare highlight during their 5-0 Ashes thrashing in Australia, when he scored a maiden hundred in his second Test at Perth and took eight wickets in Sydney.

Now Stokes is set to compete with the likes of Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes, who didn’t feature in the Sri Lanka series, for a place in the England side for what will be the first of a potentially gruelling five Tests in just 42 days against India.

Alastair Cook, despite a barrage of criticism over his tactics during Sri Lanka 100-run second Test win at Headingley last week and concerns over his own form, retained the captaincy.