England on course for monstrous defeat after Kane Williamson-inspired New Zealand set the tourists a staggering 658 to win – as Ben Stokes injury raises questions about his future as an all-rounder on bruising day three

Ben Stokes’ future as an international all-rounder came under renewed scrutiny after he limped off the field with his left hamstring in Hamilton as England headed for a crushing defeat in the third Test.

He had just shot the second ball of his 37th over of the third Test against New Zealand – his heaviest workload in two and a half years – when he grimaced, grabbed the back of his thigh and continued walking across the boundary and into the field in. pavilion.

Stokes will pen a lucrative contract with MI Cape Town in the SA20 franchise competition from January 9, while England play their first match of a white-ball tour of India a fortnight later. Their 50-over Champions Trophy campaign, meanwhile, begins on February 22 in Pakistan.

He was due to undergo a scan after the third day of play to assess the full extent of the injury.

Whatever the outcome, his latest injury scare – which resembled the injury he suffered during the Hundred in August, when he was ruled out for two months – raises new questions about his ability to fill a crucial balancing role as England’s fourth player in the next league match. winter ash.

Stokes had declared his body ‘good as gold’ before the first test in Christchurch, but admitted ahead of the Hamilton match that he now has to work ‘so much harder on the physical side of the job’.

He had just sent down the second ball of his 37th over of the third Test against New Zealand

The all-rounder grimaced and grabbed the bag from his leg before leaving the field

He added: ‘As you get older you think about your body a little more, but I work harder because I have to. I feel more confident that I can get through many spells in a day.

‘That’s where I ended up before I pulled my hamstring. I had a good bowling game in the summer and had a setback, but now I feel like I’m over that and don’t have to worry about anything happening anymore.’

Having ruled out both the home match against Sri Lanka and the first Test in Multan after tearing his hamstring playing for Northern Superchargers, Stokes recently admitted he had become too preoccupied with his return to fitness – to the detriment of the England’s chances in Pakistan.

As always, it was not easy for him to find a happy medium between his love for battle and the fragility of his 33-year-old body. Despite England winning the series in Wellington, the 23 overs he bowled on the first day here were the most he has sent down on a Test day since his debut 11 years ago.

And the setback came less than 24 hours after assistant coach Paul Collingwood said it was ‘great that he’s gotten his body back to a place where he can bowl as many overs as he thinks is necessary. It’s a huge positive for us moving forward.”

An England spokesman confirmed that Stokes – who looked distraught as he walked off – was ‘receiving treatment for a left hamstring problem. He will not return to the field in this innings and will undergo further assessment to determine his availability to bat in England’s second innings.”

The injury was part of a daunting third day for England at Seddon Park, which started two and a half hours late due to rain, and witnessed an innings of 156 from Kane Williamson – his 33rd Test century, and seventh on his home base, where he averages 94.

As New Zealand built on their first-innings lead of 204, Williamson extended his fourth-wicket stand with Rachin Ravindra to 107, before Ravindra edged Matthew Potts to mid-on for 44.

Former captain Kane Williamson hit an inspired 156 on his home ground in Hamilton

The No. 3 hit 20 fours in his mammoth innings, during which he spent nearly five hours at the crease

Zak Crawley was trapped by Matt Henry – the sixth time in the series he has dismissed the England opener

Williamson was fortunate to survive a strong lbw appeal from Brydon Carse on 73 but was otherwise untroubled by England’s spinners until he overshot Shoaib Bashir’s slog sweep to deep midwicket.

The rest of the innings was a flurry of sixes – five for Mitchell Santner alone – and wickets, with Jacob Bethell’s left-arm spin netting his first three in Tests. Tim Southee, his second victim, fell for two in his final innings for New Zealand, missing the pair of sixes he needed to become only the fourth Test player to hit 100.

When they were finally dismissed for 453, England had two days and a half hours to make 658, after which Southee bowled Ben Duckett for four from an inside edge to earn the biggest cheer of the day.

To the surprise of no one, Zak Crawley was then trapped five-legged forward by Matt Henry in the penultimate match of the day – the sixth time he has dismissed him in the series.

Crawley had already overturned one lbw decision by referee Adrian Holdstock, and when his second assessment showed the ball barely touched leg stump, he walked off shaking his head. His latest failure took his total here to 52 runs at 8.66 – the lowest average for an English opener in a series of at least six innings.

When the game ended moments later, England were 18 for two, and on course to end their year with a monstrous defeat.