English all-rounder Ben Stokes has trained with his Canterbury teammates for the first time as he prepares to take his first step towards an international comeback. The New Zealand domestic club has signed the 26-year-old as an international player and he will play in their one-day opener against Otago at Rangiora on Sunday.
The Canterbury Cricket Association board has given Stokes the green light to represent the club, while the England and Wales Cricket Board have issued a No Objection Certificate, which allows him to take the field in New Zealand.
“It was the first time I have met quite a few of them (my new teammates) today,” Stokes said at Rangiora Oval, just hours before England opted to bowl first in the second Test in Adelaide.
“But it was nice to know a few faces, a few of the young guys came over to Durham as part of the exchange program. “It was nice because it can be hard coming to a new team. “Hopefully I can get out there, do well, and contribute to Canterbury winning.”
Speculation has been rife Stokes could cross the Tasman to represent England in the Magellan Ashes, possibly for the third Test in Perth, starting on December 14. However with investigations continuing, exactly when Stokes will resume his career on the international stage remains uncertain.
He landed in Christchurch – the city of his birth – on Wednesday and the news met a torrent of speculation about his next move. Stokes was arrested in the early hours of September 25 on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm and later released after an altercation with several men. The incident allegedly left a 27-year-old man requiring hospital treatment for facial injuries.
Police continue to investigate the incident, while ECB’s independent Cricket Discipline Commission also launched its own investigation. Avon and Somerset Police released a statement on Wednesday, stating they had “passed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service and are now seeking charging advice.”
Stokes has not played cricket since the incident and, while he was named in England’s Ashes squad, he remains suspended by the ECB. Having been dumped by sponsor New Balance following his arrest, Stokes used a bat without any sponsor logos at training on Saturday.
Canterbury’s decision to permit Stokes to play comes despite former New Zealand batsman Peter Fulton, the Kings’ all-time leading run-scorer, questioning such a move while the Englishman remains suspended from national duties.
“If he can’t play for them (England), I would question whether he should be playing for Canterbury,” Fulton said. “It would depend on what his legal situation is really … He hasn’t been charged with anything.
“From a cricketing point of view, it makes all the sense in the world, but from the other point of view, it gets a little bit more complicated.” Fulton made mention of the fact Canterbury batsman Ken McClure has been stood down by the club after pleading guilty to reckless disregard following an assault on a man on a pre-season trip in September.
“You’ve obviously got someone else, a young Canterbury player, who’s been dealing with something similar,” the 38-year-old said of McClure. “It’s not anything Canterbury would ideally like to be associated with.”
But CCA chief executive Jez Curwin insisted the organisation has acted consistently given Stokes has not been charged.
