Stokes dramatically announced the end of his England career — and four-year spell as Test skipper — during a defeat by New Zealand at Trent Bridge in June that condemned his team to a 2-1 series loss. The 35-year-old has continued playing for his county side Durham and has also signed up for a stint with the Adelaide Strikers in Australia’s Big Bash League.
Newly-appointed England Test coach Stephen Fleming says it would be “wrong” to ask former captain Ben Stokes to reverse his international retirement before next year’s Ashes.
Newly-appointed England Test coach Stephen Fleming says it would be “wrong” to ask former captain Ben Stokes to reverse his international retirement before next year’s Ashes.
“I went up to Durham and spoke to Ben, which was good. “To try to turn that around and question that is wrong. “There have been some really good moments (for this side) but I think there’s more to give. England have never come close to reaching any of the three finals in the history of the WTC and are unlikely to qualify for next year’s showpiece match at the Oval.
Former New Zealand captain Fleming was appointed in July but has only just taken charge after missing England’s recent 3-0 whitewash of Pakistan due to family commitments. Fleming said his ambition was to take England from sixth in the rankings back to the summit for the first time since 2012 and improve their woeful record in the World Test Championship.
He’s really happy and seemed to be really at peace with his decision,” Fleming, who previously worked with Stokes at Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, told reporters. “I respect his decision too much,” he said. “I would love to be in charge of the number one Test team in the world,” said Fleming.
