England all-rounder Ben Stokes conceded that his finger has not healed perfectly and that he would not have come back so quickly into the England team in “normal circumstances”.
Stokes was hurried back to lead the side against Pakistan in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis in England camp that forced the entire squad including the skipper, Eoin Morgan, into quarantine.
Writing a column for The Daily Mail, Stokes has said that his finger has healed “structurally” but he had to endure all the “ridiculous pain” to lead the England team.
"It was a totally unexpected set of games for me and the truth is I would never have played under normal circumstances due to how much pain I was in with my left index finger. The surgery was a success after I had broken it at the IPL, but it was still so painful,” Stokes wrote in his Daily Mirror column.
"Sometimes though you just have to grin and bear it, and captaining England is one of those reasons. The finger has healed structurally, but the pain was just ridiculous for where it should be so that is why I have now had an injection to ease it for the rest of the summer.
Stokes went back to rest while Morgan has returned to lead the side in the T20 series against Pakistan and the all-rounder has expressed hope that the pain will not come in between him and The Hundred.
He also expressed “desperation” to do well against India in the series starting early next month and said that he hopes the pain will subside by the time series will start.
"I've got a bit of a break now, which should give the steroids time to take effect and allow me to play pain-free in the Hundred and then against India. Hopefully, my finger won't be a problem by the time the India Test series comes around, because that is a huge series and one we are all desperate to perform well in,” Stokes added.
Notably, Stokes had fractured his finger while fielding for the Rajasthan Royals in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League earlier this year.