England’s Stone out for the season with back injury

SOUTHAMPTON AFP June 19, 2021: England fast bowler Olly Stone will miss the rest of the season after suffering a stress fracture of the back, team management announced on Saturday. Stone’s latest setback of an injury-blighted career has led to the uncapped George Garton being called into England’s one-day international squad for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka.

The 27-year-old Stone’s stress fracture was diagnosed after he played in last week’s eight- wicket defeat by New Zealand in the second Test at Edgbaston -his Warwickshire home ground. Stone had suffered two previous stress fractures in 2019 and this latest setback threatens his availability for England’s Ashes tour of Australia later in the year.

News that he would miss the rest of the 2021 season came as 50-over world champions England unveiled a 16-man squad for a three-match ODI series at home to Sri Lanka staring later this month.

“Unfortunately, following the second Test at Edgbaston against New Zealand, Olly Stone has been diagnosed with a stress fracture of his lower back and will miss the rest of the summer with the injury,” said England head coach Chris Silverwood in an England and Wales Cricket Board statement.

Stokes was left out of an ODI squad again captained by 2019 World Cupwinning skipper Eoin Morgan, who will also lead England in three preceding T20 matches against Sri Lanka this month.

England ODI squad for Sri Lanka: Eoin Morgan ( Capt), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, George Garton, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood