IPL 2020: Ben Stokes set to join Rajasthan Royals squad in UAE

Dubai: England cricketer Ben Stokes is set to join the rest of the Rajasthan Royals squad in UAE after missing the initial couple of weeks of IPL 2020 to be with his ailing father in Christchurch.

In a tweet on Saturday morning, the franchise tweeted a picture of Stokes en route to the UAE, with the caption “Stoked”, with England all-rounder set to land on Sunday morning.

Stoked. #HallaBol | #RoyalsFamily | @benstokes38 pic.twitter.com/pcAvyIcaaF

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) October 3, 2020

Stokes had earlier posted images of him with his family on Instagram with the caption: ‘goodbyes never get easier’.

View this post on Instagram

Goodbye’s never get easier

A post shared by Ben Stokes (@stokesy) on Oct 2, 2020 at 2:46pm PDT

Earlier in the summer, the all-rounder pulled out of the Pakistan Test series midway in order to be with his father who was diagnosed with cancer, and his availability in the ongoing season of IPL was not confirmed by the Royals’ franchise.

As per the IPL rules related to the COVID-19 protocols, Stokes will have to undergo six days of quarantine on arrival in the UAE, and is likely to be available for the match against Delhi Capitals on October 14.

He might be available for RR’s match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on October 11 too, but it might be too soon to field him straightaway.

Stokes’s return will be a big boost for Rajasthan, as they got off to a great start in the ongoing edition. The Royals have so far won two out of their three matches but Stokes in the line-up will give their team the much-needed balance. (UNI)