England captain Ben Stokes’ recovery from a broken cheekbone will keep him sidelined for the start of the county cricket season.

The 34-year-old Durham star was hit by a ball during a training session with academy players early last month, and he had surgery soon afterwards.

Stokes has not played since the final game of England’s 4-1 Ashes loss in Australia in January.

He’ll miss the Durham County Championship opener against Kent next week.

The all-rounder could return for matches against Worcestershire in early May, Durham coach Ryan Campbell said.

England’s first summer test match is against New Zealand, beginning June 4.

Last week, the England and Wales Cricket Board announced it is sticking with the current leadership following its review of the Ashes tour.

Managing director Rob Key, coach Brendon McCullum and Stokes as captain kept their jobs after England lost the Ashes in 11 days with two games to spare.

Stokes was ordinary as a captain and all-rounder against the arch-rivals Australia, with the visitors failing to challenge the host nation in the oldest cricketing rivalry. He has been dealing with injuries, and the veteran has kept himself away from the white-ball format to prolong his career in the longest format of the game.