Stokes needs to ease off the gas - Bayliss

ENGLAND coach Trevor Bayliss has warned Durham star Ben Stokes not to risk injury by pushing himself too hard in training.

The 27-year-old was struggling physically by the end of Tuesday’s record one-day defeat to Sri Lanka, struck by several outbreaks of cramp in his right calf during his battling innings of 67.

Stokes required treatment from the physio on a handful of occasions as the tourists ended a successful series with a crushing 219-run defeat on the DuckworthLewis-Stern method, and felt discomfort in his arm after returning to the dressing room.

As the team’s premier all-rounder his workload is only going to increase during next month’s three-match Test series, a contest which is likely to take place in sapping heat.

Stokes is an insatiable worker in the nets and the gym, but Bayliss feels he may need to go easier on himself to stay at his peak.

He said: “I think he is slowly starting to believe he may not be able to go 100% every single time and train a bit smarter, especially in these types of conditions.

“We have two days off now so that will give him a bit of time to recover. We will have another chat about how much work he does.”

Captain Eoin Morgan has also voiced concerns over England’s preparations, pondering the possibility they had done too much on the eve of their loss in Colombo.

He said: “We will have to break down everything from practice – did we do too much? Did we overcook ourselves? We might have been a little bit fatigued, I don’t know.”

England have been given two full days away from practice ahead of Saturday’s standalone Twenty20.

Morgan took the unusual decision of resting himself at the Premadasa Stadium, stepping aside to allow Sam Curran the chance to impress.

The all-rounder did not grab the opportunity, expensive and wicketless with the ball and unable to contribute with the bat.

He has fared much better in the Test arena but his chances of usurping the injured David Willey as England’s left-arm option at next summer’s World Cup now appear slim.

Morgan added: “If we’re going to be serious about considering him as a potential replacement if David is injured we needed to know more about him.

“We have learned more about him.”