'Rehab Starts Now': Ben Stokes Undergoes Knee Surgery, Aiming to Get Fit for India Tour

England Test captain Ben Stokes underwent a successful surgery on his left knee that has been bothering him for over a year now.

Stokes shared a picture on X (formerly Twitter) to confirm the operation for the issue that had been troubling him for 18 months and forced him to play as a specialist batter in the recent ODI World Cup in India.

“Rehab starts now,” wrote the England allrounder alongside a photo of him outside the hospital where he had the surgery done.

Stokes came out of ODI retirement to take part in England’s unsuccessful defense of the title in India as they were eliminated in the league stage. He was their second-highest run-getter of the tournament as they finished seventh and just about managed to seal a  berth for the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Stokes wanted to go under the knife after the Ashes series but delayed it for the world cup. He also withdrew from the next year’s Indian Premier League following which Chennai Super Kings released him from their squad.

Stokes was bought by CSK for a whopping Rs 16.25 crore but he only managed to make appearances in two matches as they went on to win the title for a record-equalling fifth time.

The 32-year-old will now be aiming to get fit in time for the India tour that gets underway in January next year. England are scheduled to play five Tests during the tour starting January 25.

As per Sky Sports, the England team will be flying to the United Arab Emirates two weeks prior to the start of India tour for a camp. The Tests will be played in Hyderabad, Vizag, Rajkot, Ranchi and Dharamsala.

Stokes will miss the Caribbean tour during which England will take part in three ODIs and five T20Is starting December 3.