England skipper Ben Stokes drops major fitness update ahead of Ashes 2023

Before a tough and frantic Ashes summer this year, England Test captain Ben Stokes believes his fitness level has returned to the 2019–2020 range. The last time Australia came to England for an Ashes series, Stokes was in outstanding form for England. Since becoming captain, the all-rounder has overseen an incredible turnabout for the England team, who have won 10 out of their last 12 Test matches adopting the Bazball strategy.

Stokes did experience injury problems towards the end of that streak, which also limited his ability to play in the recently finished IPL 2023 season. The all-rounder, who can contribute with both the bat and the ball, believes he is back in the flow we saw him in a few years.

The England skipper noted in a statement to the Apex Council that his fitness has improved recently. “I’ve got myself into a position where I’m not able to look back and regret or say I have not given myself the best opportunity to play a full role with the ball this summer,” Stokes said. “I have got myself into a place where I sort of feel like I am back in 2019, 2020 space in terms of my own body and fitness. I have definitely given myself the best opportunity, but the mind and the body are different things. But I’ve given myself the best chance.”

Ben Stokes is ambitious about being a regular for the rest of the English Summer

Stokes stated he will play regularly in all of England’s upcoming matches, which include six Test matches against Australia and Ireland. “Unless I can’t walk, I’ll be on the field,” Stokes said.

“I sort of find myself answering the same question really about ‘is this going to continue?’ But I think it’s pretty clear that we have found a way in which we’ve been able to get the best out of ourselves as individuals and as a team,” Stokes said. “That’s how we are always going to look to play because we’ve seen success in it. It’s not always going to work, because you win games and you lose games, but what we have been able to do is find a formula that really works for the individuals that we have in this dressing room at the moment. That won’t change because of the opposition,” he added.