Ben Stokes has the option to resume his one-day international career and take part in England’s title defence at the 50-over World Cup later this year in India, according to white-ball coach Matthew Mott.
Ben Stokes not only led England in scoring in the T20 World Cup final in Australia but also earned the Player of the Match award after the team’s victory over New Zealand in the 2019 World Cup final at Lord’s.
He gave up one-day cricket last year, citing his workload, but Mott stated that if circumstances altered before the World Cup in October or November, he would be happy to talk about it. Mott informed reporters that “The door is always open for a player of such quality,” about the upcoming three-match ODI series starting on Friday in South Africa, but also emphasized that the player’s main focus is on red-ball cricket as the captain.
“We respect that, and we’ll talk to him when he’s ready,” said the speaker. The limited-overs captain Jos Buttler and the director of England men’s cricket Rob Key, according to Mott, did not set a deadline for Stokes to decide. When it comes time to choose the best 15 players for the World Cup, “we need to retain a really flexible, open mind to guys,” he continued.
“Jofra Archer Excited to Return to Cricket After Two Years on the Sidelines, Says Coach Mott”
Ahead of the series against South Africa, Mott said fit-again speedster Jofra Archer was “frothing to play” after nearly two years on the sidelines.
“Having watched him from a distance, I think he’s one of the most exciting things to have happened in cricket for the last decade,” Mott said. “The best thing I can say is that we have a general plan of what it (Archer’s schedule) might look like. “We will work through it with him, see how his body is coping. I definitely think he is a high priority and he will be managed as well as possible.”