TOI Sports Desk
NEW DELHI: It is unclear that Olly Stone will be ready for the second Test in Multan in England‘s tour of Pakistan as he is scheduled to travel home on Wednesday following his wedding this weekend.
At the end of the English summer, Stone made his first appearances in the format in three years, taking seven wickets in two Test matches against Sri Lanka.
For the first Test in Multan, England selected Brydon Carse as their pace option, which meant that Stone could leave earlier than expected.
Stone’s return date is still unsure and will be dependent on how England’s fast bowlers do after the first Test. But it’s unlikely that he will play since the second Test starts on Tuesday and he is getting married on Saturday.
For the first Test, England’s seamers were Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, and Carse; Matthew Potts was also included in the team.
Given that Stone was not listed in their most recent central contracts and that his wedding was scheduled far in advance of his return, the England management has granted Stone’s request for a leave of absence.
Before the tour, Stone spoke with England’s managing director Rob Key and coach Brendon McCullum about his plans, and they decided he should go home to get married.
“We booked the wedding on the basis of me only playing for Notts at the time,” Stone recently told the BBC, as per quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
“Jess said she was happy to move the wedding and I was adamant on keeping it where it was if possible. For what she has given up and sacrificed for me, I thought the least I could do was to try and make it work,” he added.