Stokes set for Championship return with Durham
England Test captain Ben Stokes is set to play his first County Championship match for two years when Durham play Lancashire on Friday (11:00 BST).
Stokes last featured in a Championship game for Durham in May 2022.
But, as the 32-year-old begins his preparations for England's Test series against West Indies and Sri Lanka later this summer, he will play in the four-day Division One match at Stanley Park in Blackpool.
"I suggest if you've got a few days over the weekend, you get yourself down to Blackpool to watch the great Ben Stokes' return for Durham," said the club's coach Ryan Campbell.
Stokes is not going to the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA next month as he wants to focus on regaining his fitness to fulfil his role as an all-rounder in the Test team.
Following knee surgery in the winter, Stokes played all five Tests on England's tour of India, but he bowled only five overs across the whole series, all in the final Test.
England's first Test against the West Indies begins at Lord's on 10 July, but Durham's match with Lancashire is one of four possible red-ball games he could play before that date.
Stokes did not play any county cricket last summer as he managed his knee injury before the Ashes.
He played three matches for Durham in Division Two in 2022 as preparation for the start of his tenure as England captain.
In that spell he scored a memorable 161 off just 88 balls against Worcestershire at New Road, and also took 4-72 in a match against Middlesex at Lord's.
Now, Durham are gearing up to welcome Stokes back into their ranks with Australian Campbell acknowledging how exciting it is to have one of the world's best cricketers available to them.
"Suddenly there's just this air of excitement around the place just when he walks in the room," Campbell told BBC Radio Newcastle.
"You want to play against the best players in the world. But to have one of those in our own team, to show us the way, his experiences, it's unbelievable."
