Former England captain Ben Stokes has spoken publicly for the first time since his shock announcement about the decision to call time on his Test career.
Stokes, 35, shocked English cricket after announcing his retirement in June during the third and final Test against New Zealand.
It had been a series marred by drama with Stokes and team-mate Gus Atkinson missing the second Test after being dropped for breaking the team’s curfew while out celebrating their first Test win at Lord’s.
An incident in the early hours after that match saw an altercation at the Rex Rooms nightclub in Chelsea, when a member of the ECB’s security staff was struck by Saracens academy player Totoa Auvaa amid a disagreement over table arrangements in a VIP area.
Stokes eventually returned for the third Test but has now revealed his thought process behind his decision to call it a day.
‘There’s a lot to it that I think is just not for today or for the near future,’ he told the Love of Cricket podcast.
‘I look at planning ahead and I was going “We’ve got the Ashes in 2027” and I think you know I spoke to (wife) Clare a lot about this even before I took the decision.
‘You always plan your retirement, right? And it was 2027 Ashes, whatever happens there you’re going ‘Not sure I go past that’.
Ben Stokes announced his shock retirement during the third Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge
And then over time sort of I was (thinking) “How am I going to get there? How am I going to get to Australia 2027 with everything, with how everything is feeling at the moment?”
‘Playing for Durham I’m going “How am I even going to get to end the New Zealand series?” I’m worrying about how I’m going to get there and thinking that Australia is going to be my last one.’
Stokes, however, remains keen to stay in the game. He is currently back playing for Durham in the One Day Cup and Daily Mail Sport reported this week he is in talks with Sydney Sixers over a Big Bash contract this winter.
Further down the line, though, Stokes revealed he has his sights set on taking the top England job.
‘I’m doing my level three coaching now while I’m still playing because I want when the day comes that I’m not playing anymore,’ he said.
‘I’d love to be able to have all that stuff signed off and done. So then I’ve got that option if I want to go into it or I want to be, I have a couple years off and just do whatever I want to do.
‘I want to be a coach. I know what I want to do in terms of staying within the game which is to be a coach. And would I love to be coach of England one day? Absolutely. I would love to be able to do that. Do I think it’s going to happen? I don’t know. No idea.’
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