England coach Trevor Bayliss has said it was considered important to bring Ben Stokes straight back into the squad following his acquittal for affray for his own “wellbeing” but has made no guarantees about his selection for the third Test against India.
Stokes will be assessed “mentally and physically” over the two days of training at Trent Bridge before a decision is made on whether he returns to the XI.
It was less than two hours after the verdict was handed down at Bristol Crown Court that the ECB confirmed Stokes’ recall following a conference call involving various parties including Bayliss, Joe Root and the ECB board.
“It was a collective decision – myself, management, captain, the board, Ed Smith – everyone had a say,” Bayliss said. “It was basically thought that for his own wellbeing it was good to get Ben back around the cricket.”
If Stokes is deemed available to return it will present a selection dilemma following the success of Sam Curran and Chris Woakes in the first two Tests.
“There’s nothing automatic about selections, we’ll see how he is mentally as well as physically,” Bayliss said. “We’ll find out over the next couple of days, I haven’t actually spoken to him yet. We’ve got the next two days to assess where he’s at.
“It’s a good position to be in from that [a selection] point of view. We’ve got some guys in form, in the team. It will be a difficult decision to make. Whether it’s Ben or someone else.”
More to follow
Source: ESPN Crickinfo