Gus Atkinson pulled out of Hundred final as ECB becomes cautious after Ben Stokes' injury

Gus Atkinson took 22 wickets in his debut series against West Indies and was named Player of the Series.

England star speedster Gus Atkinson will miss the final of the men’s Hundred after being made unavailable by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) ahead of England’s two-match test series against Sri Lanka.

This decision comes in the aftermath of the England test captain Ben Stokes suffering a hamstring injury while playing for the Northern Superchargers, which ruled him out of the rest of the English summer.

Earlier, Chris Woakes was also withdrawn from the rest of the Hundred, while Jamie Smith, Ben Duckett, and Jordan Cox are available for the tournament’s last stage ahead of the first test against Sri Lanka.

Gus Atkinson has been withdrawn from the Hundred Final: Oval Invincibles captain Sam Billings

The Oval Invincibles are all set to take on the winner of the eliminator match between Birmingham Phoenix and Southern Brave on August 17 in the grand finale of the Hundred tournament. The final will take place on August 18.

Ahead of the final, Oval Invincibles skipper Sam Billings confirmed that Gus Atkinson will not be available.

It is understood that the ECB has taken a cautionary approach of pulling out key England players because they don’t want any further injury concerns ahead of the test series against Sri Lanka, which starts on August 21.

“Gus has been withdrawn, which is quite understandable. It’s disappointing for him but Saqib Mahmood has been phenomenal for us all tournament and showed his class the other night. He’ll stay in the side,” Sam Billings, the Invincibles’ captain, said.

“Jordan will be available and I think that’s great for him. I’ve been in that position before where as a young player, you get withdrawn and miss out on playing time. For anyone to play in a final at Lord’s in the leading domestic competition in the country, in front of a packed house is the perfect preparation for international cricket,” added Billings.

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