Ben Stokes has ruled out reversing his retirement for next year’s Ashes with the England Test captain declaring himself “done” with international cricket.
Stokes bowed out after England suffered third Test and series defeat to New Zealand at Trent Bridge, a day after his decision to retire was announced with the skipper in the middle of a spell of bowling.
The 35-year-old made 14 hundreds and took more than 250 wickets in 122 Tests for England, captaining the side over the last four years.
While the all-rounder had said on Sunday night that he felt he had run out of “fight”, former England captain Michael Vaughan had speculated that Stokes might be persuaded to return for one last clash with Australia in 2027’s five-Test series – particularly if there is a change of coach or leadership.
But Stokes ruled out the possibility of attempting to win back the urn, suggesting that he was looking forward to time away from international cricket.
“I am incredibly content with everything right now,” Stokes told the BBC.
“It is a decision I don’t take lightly. It has taken a lot of time. I am done. I am very happy.
“I accept people might be asking questions. But end of the day it’s a decision I have taken. I hope people can respect that, but I have understanding people might be scratching heads wondering why and there could be many reasons. I think the most important reason, and one people can respect, is I I am taking this decision because I feel it’s the best thing for me.”
Stokes’ retirement and a seventh defeat in their last nine Tests will bring renewed scrutiny on head coach Brendon McCullum and Rob Key, England’s managing director of men’s cricket.
McCullum insisted that he was keen to continue in his role and forge a new coach and captain partnership with Stokes’ successor.
“My enthusiasm for English cricket and commitment to English cricket has never wavered,” McCullum said to Sky. “I’ve got firm belief in the direction that this team can go in.
“Those are the conversations we need to have in due course. We’ve got a few weeks, or longer than that, before the next Test series, and we’ll have a good opportunity to sit down and map out what that looks like.
“We’ve got some good strong leaders within the side and some options to utilise. They won’t be Ben Stokes, because Ben Stokes was very much his own kind of leader. But that’s just the nature of things. No-one can play forever, no-one can captain forever.”
