The allrounder has made himself unavailable for June's T20 World Cup when England defend their crown, but that is potentially good news for his county
Ben Stokes will grace Durham's first season back in County Championship Division One for eight years.
England's allrounder has committed to playing for his county during the four-day competition to help build for the start of the home Test summer.
The announcement follows news that Stokes has made himself unavailable for selection for England's T20 World Cup defence in June.
The Test skipper is instead focusing on building back to full fitness as a bowler ahead of the series against West Indies and Sri Lanka.
And that decision is also set to benefit his county Durham who are back in the top flight for the first time since 2016 after romping to the Division Two title last season.
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Stokes is set for his first Championship run-out since 2022 (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Head coach Ryan Campbell was not anticipating either Stokes or seamer Mark Wood playing for the club this season due to their international commitments but said it would be "awesome" if either became available.
It is unclear at exactly which point in the summer Stokes will feature in the Championship again, with his last appearance coming against Middlesex in May 2022.
Durham have seven matches during the first red-ball block across April and May before a break for the start of the Blast.
When the Championship resumes they travel to Essex (June 23) and welcome Worcestershire (June 30) before the first Test against the Windies gets underway on July 10 at Lord's.
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