Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson take wickets on County Championship return after being dropped by England
Ben Stokes returned with a wicket for Durham against Northamptonshire ahead of a potential reintroduction to the England squad for the third Test against New Zealand.
The England captain - who was dropped alongside teammate Gus Atkinson after breaking England's midnight curfew during an incident at London nightclub involving a ECB security guard and a Saracens rugby player - took 1-60 in 18 overs on his return to first-class cricket as Durham rued four dropped catches.
Atkinson looked in fine fettle for Surrey, boasting 2-33 in 15 overs with an outstanding economy of 2.2 at Glamorgan.
Stokes and Atkinson, having made themselves available for their counties in in the aftermath of the nightclub incident, are expected to return to the international setup for the final Test of the series next week following the conclusion of investigations by the ECB and Cricket Regulator.
Atkinson could enter the England fray buoyed after his impressive figures - most of which came from a blistering eight-over opening spell which saw him bowl five maidens and give up just eight runs - as his side limited Glamorgan to 244-6 after the first day's play.
Stokes, though, has work to do for his Durham side, and will be ruing missed chances after opener Ricardo Vasconcelos (181no) was dropped just four balls into the seamer's opening spell. Northants ended the day's play well in the ascendancy on 388-6.
Elsewhere, England all-rounder Rehan Ahmed boosted his Test credentials with impressive performances on both sides of the ball, taking two wickets in just eight balls as Leicestershire skittled Yorkshire for 185 before making 58no of his side's 177-3 at close of play.
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19 of June 2026
