Ben Stokes remains under consideration for an England white-ball return with Harry Brook, the new limited‑overs captain, saying it would “be stupid to turn a blind eye to him”.
Stokes, the England Test captain, was in the running for the one-day international captaincy but concerns over his workload prompted a double promotion for Brook. The 2023 World Cup was the last time Stokes featured in an England white-ball team, his recent focus tied to the long form while dealing with various injuries.
Brook, however, would welcome a Stokes comeback to the shorter forms should a packed itinerary allow for it. “With the schedule, he’s not going to be available all the time,” the 26-year-old said. “But he’s one of the best players in the world and we’d be stupid to turn a blind eye to him.”
Jonny Bairstow, who has not played for England since the T20 World Cup last year, remains in contention too, according to Brook. “We’ve all seen that he can put the best bowlers in the world under pressure from their best balls and manipulate the field and score big runs. There’s no reason why he can’t get selected again.”
Brook’s own schedule will surely require management, his appointment marking a break from the past. Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler, his most recent predecessors, were out of the Test picture during their periods in charge, unlike Brook.
“Missing the odd series wouldn’t be a stupid thing,” the new captain said. He also voiced his excitement at a busy winter schedule: a white‑ball tour of New Zealand is followed by the Ashes, before a visit to Sri Lanka and India for bilateral commitments and the T20 World Cup. “It’s a lot of cricket, and I’m looking forward to all of it.”
A brief tour of Ireland this September could be one from which to rest, but Brook did not want to rule himself out. “I might want to play, because it’s my first year, I might want to try to keep around the lads and keep them in high spirits.”
If something has to give, it is franchise life for the time being. Brook pulled out of his £590,000 Indian Premier League deal with Delhi Capitals last month to focus on international cricket, leaving him at the mercy of the tournament’s new rules: withdrawals unrelated to injury or illness prompt a two-year ban.
“That’s the rules, so if I do get banned, fair play,” Brook said. “I’m completely committed to playing cricket for England – if that means franchise takes a step back for a little while, so be it.”
Asked if he could envisage any amount of money coming before playing for England, Brook replied: “Definitely not at the minute. I just want to play cricket for England, represent my country like I have done over the last few years and hopefully have a big impact on the side moving forward.”
While claiming there would be changes to the way England play, Brook’s words echoed those of the regime before him, highlighting the desire for “aggressive” cricket.
He said he will hopefully play “a game or two” for Yorkshire in the County Championship before England’s first Test of the summer against Zimbabwe, with its final day scheduled for 25 May. A three-match one-day international series against West Indies, Brook’s first assignment in charge, begins just four days later.
“I’m going to be myself, as much as I possibly can be. Be relaxed, be calm, try to have a lot of fun and enjoy it. If you’re playing cricket for England, we’re all living that dream. As a 10-year-old looking at yourself now, you’d be absolutely buzzing and over the moon. You’ve got to try to create that environment in the changing room and just remember that you’re doing a job a hell of a lot of people would want to be doing.”
