LONDON: England Test captain Ben Stokes has suffered a severe facial injury after being struck by a cricket ball.&nbsp;The 34-year-old all-rounder posted a picture on Instagram showing his right eye heavily swollen and bruised, a graze on his cheek and lip, and a bandage stuffed in his nose.&nbsp;&quot;You should see the state of the cricket ball,&quot; read Stokes&#39; caption of the picture, alongside a laughing face emoji.&nbsp;Stokes is back in England following a woeful Ashes tour, which ended with a 4-1 series loss to Australia last month.&nbsp;Although Stokes has made it clear he wants to continue to captain the red-ball side, his position remains uncertain amid an England and Wales Cricket Board review.&nbsp;England coach Brendon McCullum has labelled some of the ensuing fall-out from the Ashes &quot;out of order&quot;.&nbsp;Stokes is no longer a member of England&#39;s white-ball set-up and won&#39;t feature in the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka that starts this weekend.&nbsp;He could next play for Durham in the early rounds of the County Championship before England begin their home Test season against New Zealand at Lord&#39;s on June 4 -- Stokes&#39;s 35th birthday.&nbsp;Stokes is currently recovering from an adductor injury suffered during the fifth Ashes Test in Sydney in January.&nbsp;The injury prevented him from bowling in Australia&#39;s second innings and completed a frustrating tour for the England skipper, who bowled well throughout the series but struggled with the bat.&nbsp;Stokes&#39; groin problem is the latest of several injuries that have blighted his career.&nbsp;In 2024, he tore his hamstring twice and he finished last season&#39;s home series against India on the sidelines due to a shoulder problem, having undergone an operation in late 2023 to deal with knee issues.&nbsp;Stokes is contracted by England until the end of the 2027 home season summer and he may now avoid entering next month&#39;s auction for the Hundred, leaving him free to focus on the Test team.

Cricket

England captain Ben Stokes suffered a facial injury after being hit by a cricket ball. He is recovering from injuries and remains uncertain about his future after the Ashes loss.

England captain Stokes suffers facial injury after being hit by ball

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: England held their nerve to beat India by four runs and secure a place in the semifinals of the ICC Women&rsquo;s Cricket World Cup 2025 on Sunday. Chasing 289, India looked set for victory for much of their innings. Smriti Mandhana scored 88, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur added 70 runs off 70 balls. England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt took 2-47 in eight overs, and left-arm spinner Linsey Smith bowled tightly, taking Mandhana&rsquo;s key wicket and helping England restrict India to 284-6 in 50 overs. India finished with 284-6 in 50 overs, its third straight loss in the tournament in front of a home crowd at Holkar Stadium. Earlier, England batted first and scored 288-8, thanks to Heather Knight&rsquo;s brilliant 109 off 91 balls. The win gives England four victories in five games, keeping them unbeaten and sending them to the semifinals alongside defending champions Australia and South Africa.&nbsp; England will face Australia on Wednesday at Holkar Stadium. India must bounce back against New Zealand on Thursday and Bangladesh on Sunday in Navi Mumbai to keep their semifinal hopes alive.

England held their nerve to defeat India by four runs at Holkar Stadium, with Heather Knight’s 109 and key wickets from Nat Sciver-Brunt and Linsey Smith helping secure a semifinal spot in the tournament

England edge India by four runs, secure Women’s World Cup semifinal

Reuters

The opening game of New Zealand&#39;s three-match Twenty20 series with England was abandoned due to heavy rain in Christchurch on Saturday, with the hosts denied the opportunity to chase down a modest total for victory.&nbsp;Play was called off following a long delay after England&#39;s innings, in which the tourists scored 153-6 in 20 overs on a difficult wicket, with Sam Curran (49 not out) finishing well after Jos Buttler (29) failed to build on a good start. The second match takes place at the same venue on Monday before the finale in Auckland on Thursday,&nbsp;as both teams step up their preparations for next year&#39;s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, likely to be held in February-March.&nbsp;New Zealand fast bowlers Matt Henry (1-26) and Jacob Duffy (1-45) made full use of early swing and bounce at Hagley Oval to restrict England to only 44-2 in the opening six powerplay overs before Harry Brook (20) looked to cut loose.&nbsp;Jimmy Neesham (1-20) conceded a couple of huge sixes to the England skipper in the eighth over but gained revenge by getting through his defense, and the tourists&#39; momentum ground to a halt again when Mitch Santner (1-20) removed Tom Banton for nine.&nbsp;The dangerous Buttler also fell to spin shortly afterwards, holing out in the deep while looking to attack Michael Bracewell (1-10),&nbsp;before rain halted play in the 17th over with England on 110-5 and seeking a late charge to boost their total.&nbsp;Kyle Jamieson (1-27) removed Jordan Cox for 16 after the break, but Curran persevered, benefiting from a dropped catch and surviving a loud appeal for lbw to take England to a respectable total with 19 runs in the final over.

The second match takes place at the same venue on Monday before the finale in Auckland on Thursday, as both teams step up their preparations for next year's T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

New Zealand v England T20 series opener abandoned due to rain

MADRID: England&#39;s Marco Penge held his nerve to seal his third European Tour title of the season with a playoff victory over Daniel Brown at the Spanish Open in Madrid on Sunday.&nbsp;Penge sealed victory on the first sudden-death hole, after his fellow countryman Brown had come back from five shots behind heading into the last round.&nbsp;&quot;It felt like I was really up against it, but I feel like I managed myself really well and managed to stay solid,&quot; said world number 55 Penge.&nbsp;&quot;I felt good. I was just trying to stick to the same stuff I&#39;ve been doing for the last six months.&quot;&nbsp;Penge also won the Hainan Classic and the Danish Golf Championship earlier this year in a breakthrough campaign.&nbsp;The 27-year-old struggled to a two-over front nine to give playing partners Brown and Joel Girrbach hope after starting the day four strokes clear at the top of the leaderboard, but a birdie on the 12th helped him stay in front.&nbsp;Brown, ranked 102nd, forced added holes with a birdie on the 18th, a short par four.&nbsp;But Penge turned the tables when they played the closing hole again a few minutes later in the playoff to take the spoils.&nbsp;Switzerland&#39;s Girrbach finished alone in third place on 14-under for the tournament, one shot outside the playoff.&nbsp;Three-time champion and home favourite Jon Rahm delighted the crowds with a final-round 65 to finish in a tie for ninth.

Athletics

England’s Marco Penge won his third European Tour title of the year at the Spanish Open in Madrid, defeating Daniel Brown in a playoff. Penge held his nerve despite a challenging round, securing a breakthrough season.


Articles tagged with "england"

England captain Stokes suffers facial injury after being hit by ball

England edge India by four runs, secure Women’s World Cup semifinal

New Zealand v England T20 series opener abandoned due to rain

England's Penge wins third title of year at Spanish Open