Olly Stone signs for Middlesex with eye on Ashes

Published - 07 Sept 2025, 19:21 IST | Updated - 07 Sept 2025, 19:22 IST

Olly Stone has signed for Middlesex on loan. The move serves a last-ditch opportunity for Stone to force his way into England's plans for the 2025-26 Ashes. Stone has played 16 internationals (including five Tests) for England so far. He was part of their squad for tours to Pakistan and New Zealand in 2024.

However, the right-arm quick's career has been plagued by injuries and he was ruled out of the home Test summer with a knee surgery in April. Since his recovery, Stone, whose central contract will expire at the end of the season, has played six matches: four for Nottinghamshire in the T20 Blast and two for London Spirit in The Hundred.

Stone has agreed to a short-term loan to Middlesex for a couple of County Championship rounds. He is slated to make his debut for Middlesex against Derbyshire on Monday, September 8.

Nottinghamshire's head coach Peter Moores voiced delight on the development, mentioning that Stone's spell at Middlesex will prove beneficial for him in the long run, alluding to the 2025/26 Ashes. He also complimented Stone's outings in the limited-overs format.

"This is a great opportunity for Olly to get some competitive overs under his belt with the red ball for the first time since the back end of last summer. A fit and firing Olly Stone is an asset for any side, and we're sure he'll be well served by this short spell at Middlesex," Moores was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

We're fortunate to have a number of seam bowlers to choose from for our next couple of games, and we want to make sure Olly has the best possible chance to get some miles back in the legs after some impressive spells in white-ball cricket so far this summer," he added.

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Speaking of Stone's First-Class career, he has picked 174 wickets in 54 matches (89 innings) at an average of 27.16 and an economy of 3.44. His last competitive match was in August earlier this year.