England rocked by Ben Stokes injury scare; 'stiff and sore' captain uncertain to bowl amid Rahul-Gill fightback

Ben Stokes was seen clutching his hamstring while chasing the ball in the outfield on Day 4

Marcus Trescothick, England's assistant coach, cast major doubt over Ben Stokes' availability for bowling duties on Day 5 of the fourth Test against India in Manchester after KL Rahul and Shubman Gill staged a valiant fightback on Saturday. Stokes, the highest wicket-taker in the series and who picked up a five-wicket haul in the first innings of this Test match, was deemed "stiff and sore" to bowl in the 63 overs of action in India's second innings.

England's captain Ben Stokes during the fourth day of the fourth Test match between India and England, at the Old Trafford cricket ground (PTI)

Chris Woakes inflicted a nightmarish start for India in the second innings on Saturday, dismissing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and No. 3 Sai Sudharsan in consecutive deliveries in the very first over. However, India bounced back and were unscathed for two full sessions after Rahul and Gill added an unbeaten 174-run stand for the third wicket. Barring a dropped catch off a delivery from Brydon Carse, the fast bowlers looked ineffective in creating chances against the Indian pair and hence missed the services of Stokes.

The England captain, who made a return to Test cricket last month after undergoing a hamstring surgery in January, bowled 129 overs in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series already, the most he has ever bowled in a single contest. On Day 3 of the ongoing match at Old Trafford, Stokes retired hurt while batting, but returned later that same evening to score a century.

While the century did end the chatter around his injury, it resurfaced after Stokes did not bowl on Day 4.

"He's a bit stiff and sore," Trescothick said hen asked if the skipper will bowl on Day 5. "He's had quite a big workload in the last few weeks, and then batting in the first innings, he was getting quite a bit of cramp. We are hoping that with another night's rest and a bit more physio work overnight, he'll be back and doing a bit tomorrow."

The former England batter further played down the concerns surrounding Stokes after he was seen clutching his hamstring while chasing the ball in the outfield.

"It's just a build-up," he said. "It's just such a heavy workload, from where he's been to what he's doing. It's just trying to monitor it, and obviously the cramp that he was getting yesterday, you have that little bit of worry… We'll see what he's like tomorrow."

Following the Oval Test, which will begin on July 31, Stokes won't be seen in action until the Ashes in November as he is set to skip the Hundred next month.