England Test captain and versatile all-rounder Ben Stokes has indicated a willingness to return to One-Day Internationals (ODIs) ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in Pakistan next year.
Ben Stokes, 33, retired from ODI cricket during England’s home series against South Africa in 2022 but made a brief comeback for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. Despite England's underwhelming campaign—where they finished seventh with just six points from nine matches—Stokes delivered strong performances, scoring 304 runs in six matches at an average above 50, including a century.
In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Stokes lauded the current generation of white-ball cricketers, particularly highlighting young talent Jacob Bethell.
“This white-ball team has gone in a new direction. We’ve seen some unbelievable talent come through. Jacob Bethell, for example, I think is going to be a superstar," said Stokes.
He continued, “I’ve played a lot of white-ball cricket for England, I’m very happy and content with what I’ve achieved in that form of the game.”
When questioned about the possibility of rejoining England's ODI squad, Stokes didn’t hesitate to express his openness: “If I am part of the white-ball teams’ plans going forward in any way, shape or form then great. If I get the call, saying ‘do you want to come and play?’ It’s definitely going to be a ‘yes’,” he added.
England has announced their squad for the three-match Test series against Pakistan, and Pakistan has also revealed their 15-player squad for the first Test.
England squad for Pakistan Test series: Ben Stokes (C), Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes.
Pakistan squad for first Test against England: Shan Masood (C), Saud Shakeel (VC), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (WK), and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
