Chennai Super Kings suffered a huge blow in the lead-up to the upcoming season as their star all-rounder, Ben Stokes, decided to opt out of IPL 2024 to manage his workload and fitness, with the franchise ‘in support of his decision’. CSK, who recently was said to take a call on Stokes’ future in the franchise owing to his knee-related issues, for which he is sure to undergo surgery, will now be without their most expensive purchase in the tournament history.

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Bought for a whopping INR 16.25 crore (US$ 1.98 million approx. at the time) ahead of the IPL 2023, Stokes played just two matches for the CSK, scoring 15 runs in total and bowling just one over. Stokes played as a specialist batter but failed to contribute enough in the franchise’s record joint-most winning campaign.

Although Stokes’ knee issue had been a cause of concern for him for some time now, it flared up during the New Zealand series in February last year, with CSK coach Stephen Fleming admitting waiting for Stokes to get ‘100% fit’ before asking him to bowl.

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Meanwhile, Stokes unretired himself from the ODIs following the Ashes 2023 to appear in the World Cup title defence for England. Though he was among the two centurions (including Dawid Malan), the 2019 title holders had a torrid run, losing six out of the nine contested matches. With two fifties (against Australia and Pakistan) and a hundred against the Netherlands, Stokes amassed 304 runs, averaging 50.66.

Stokes to undergo surgery on troubled left knee

Even during the fag end of the tournament, Stokes confirmed his decision to go under the knife on his troubled left knee. Following the surgery, Stokes would remain on the sidelines and continue with the rehab. Considering England would tour India in January for five Tests, Stokes’ participation remains under question. 

“I’ve put a lot of hard work in away from cricket to give myself the best chance of a quicker recovery, and with Christmas and everything coming up, the main thing for me is getting this knee right and being ready and raring to go for that Test series in India,” Stokes had said after England’s last game at the World Cup.

Meanwhile, the IPL 2024 mini-auction is on December 19 in Dubai. 

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