Ashes 2017: Ben Stokes joins Canterbury but England future remains up in the air as police investigation nears conclusion

The England all-rounder is awaiting the outcome of an investigation into an incident in Bristol in September that could rule him out of the Ashes series completely

Ben Stokes has joined Canterbury to play in their one-day and Twenty20 side (Getty)

Ben Stokes has signed for the New Zealand side Canterbury as he waits to find out whether he will face a police charge. Stokes arrived in the country in Wednesday, and has been issued with a No-Objection Certificate by the England and Wales Cricket Board that will allow him to play in the 50-over Ford Trophy and the – slightly unfortunately named – Super Smash Twenty20 competition.

Stokes could make his debut as early as Sunday against Otago at Rangiora, and Gary Stead, director of cricket at the Canterbury Cricket Association, admitted that “everything has happened very quickly for us”.

Stead added: “We are delighted to welcome Ben into the team. While Ben awaits the outcome of an investigation under way in the UK, he wants to maintain his fitness and his connection with the game. He is a brilliant all-round player and we are really pleased to have secured one of the world’s best players in our domestic competition.”

“Ben will bring international experience to what is a relatively youthful changing room. He will also bring depth to our seam attack, which has been affected by a string of injuries, and provide more balance and firepower to our batting line-up.”

None of this affects Stokes’s availability – or lack of it – to play in the ongoing Ashes series, although a successful stint in New Zealand would pile pressure on the ECB to lift his suspension, should he be cleared of the charges relating to an altercation in Bristol in September. Bristol and Avon Police announced on Wednesday that they had referred Stokes’s case to the Crown Prosecution Service, who will make a final decision on whether to charge him.

That decision could take as little as a couple of days or a few weeks, but The Independent understands that the ECB will not unilaterally call up Stokes until that decision is made, no matter how desperate the situation in Australia becomes.

Once the Crown Prosecution Service instruct the police whether or not to press charges, it gets complicated. The ECB board would immediately convene to decide whether or not to lift Stokes’s suspension. At the same time, however, the ECB’s independent Cricket Discipline Commission would begin its own investigation, with the power to fine or ban Stokes if it sees fit.

In short, then, Stokes could be cleared and play in the Ashes, he could be cleared and still not play, he could be charged and not play, or he could be charged and still play, if his court date is set for after the end of the series and the ECB deem it worth the inevitable PR fallout that would result. Such are the variables involved – and the potential for immense criticism should the ECB get it wrong – that it remains likely they will err on the side of caution.

Ben Stokes has touched down in New Zealand ahead of a potential Ashes recall (Getty)

Speaking at the Adelaide Oval, where England will face Australia in the second Ashes Test on Saturday, James Anderson said that nothing had changed as far as the players were concerned. “It’s out of our hands,” he said. “For us, it’s good that he’s getting to play some cricket. If the situation does change, he can hopefully join up with us at some point. It’s not something we really think about.”