Ben Stokes says he’s ‘quite lucky’ to be alive after horrifying training accident

England Test captain Ben Stokes has admitted he feels lucky to be alive after suffering a broken cheekbone and other facial injuries when he was struck by a cricket ball in February.

The accident occurred during a training session when Stokes was coaching Durham's academy players, and surgery was required.

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The all-rounder described the incident as "pretty scary," acknowledging the outcome could have been far more severe.

Speaking in an interview with the England and Wales Cricket Board, the 34-year-old recounted the moment.

"I copped one straight in the face,” he explained. "Pretty nasty but, funnily, probably the best result of a bad situation, to be honest. Just a couple of inches one way or the other, I might not be here doing this interview, if I didn’t turn my head round."

Despite requiring "pretty major facial surgery" to address the damage, Stokes expressed gratitude for his recovery.

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"All things considered... I’ve got out quite lucky. So pretty thankful for that," he stated.

The injury caused a setback of around a "month, five weeks" to his pre-season preparations, forcing him to revise his plans for the start of the season with Durham.

Stokes is now on track to feature in two County Championship matches next month, a crucial step before he is expected to lead England in their first Test of the summer.

He concluded his reflection on the ordeal, stating: "At the back end of all that now but it was a pretty scary situation. Thankfully still here and everything’s all right."

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Stokes is anticipated to captain England against New Zealand at Lord’s, starting on June 4, as the team aims to rebound from their Ashes defeat over the winter.

The 34-year-old admitted the criticism the team received for their preparation, performances and behaviour in Australia was difficult but he is not shying away from it.

“I think that a lot of it was warranted,” he said. “A lot of it was put forward in a way that was a bit extreme but I think, when you look at it deep, deep, deep, you agree with some of it.

“I also think that some of it was a bit harsh and a bit unneeded and it was like the knives are out.

“You’ve got to take it because performing like we did in Australia is disappointing to a lot of people, and I feel like a word like ‘unacceptable’ for us to perform that way would be close because we’re a much better team than that.”

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Stokes is confident the experience will prove valuable in the long run, adding: “Overall it was pretty tough and a lot of it we’ve got to take blame as players and as a team and as an organisation.

“You learn from these things. I’ve come away from Australia obviously disappointed but had a real deep, hard think about quite a lot of things.

“I’m very comfortable and very confident about where I am right now with what we need to do to kick on and take the team forward again. I look back to when I first took this job on – we’re in a much stronger position now than we were then.”

And Stokes will not be looking to send a message to England’s critics this summer.

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“I don’t want to feel like I’m only going out there to be successful to say ‘F you’ to everyone who’s criticised us,” he said.

“I don’t think that’s a very healthy way to look at it. I want to go out there and do well because I’m representing England.”

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