England all-rounder and one of Rajasthan Royals' most reliable players, Ben Stokes, has been ruled out of IPL 2021 with a broken finger. He sustained the injury during the 10th over of his team's first match of the tournament against Punjab Kings when he dived forward to take a catch.

Confirming that Stokes fractured his finger, Rajasthan Royals' official handle announced that the all-rounder has been ruled out of the remainder of the 14th edition of Indian Premier League. "Rajasthan Royals all-rounder Ben Stokes injured a finger on his left hand while fielding during the team's match against Punjab Kings on 12 April 2021 in Mumbai. Subsequent investigations revealed that he sustained a broken finger, which will unfortunately rule him out of the remainder of the Indian Premier League 2021 season. Everyone at Rajasthan Royals absolutely admires Ben for being such a huge asset and a valuable member of the Royals family, both on and off the field, and wishes him a speedy recovery," Rajasthan Royals' official statement read.

The team further mentioned that they will find and announce a replacement for Ben Stokes soon. The statement added, "We are delighted that Ben would like to stay with the group to provide his valued support and inputs off the field. In the meantime, we will be reviewing potential replacement options for the remainder of the season."

Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the IPL following a broken finger in last night's game. ??

He will stay with the Royals and support the rest of the group in the upcoming matches. ??#RoyalsFamily | @benstokes38 pic.twitter.com/WVUIFmPLMJ

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) April 13, 2021