Stokes not interested in ‘burden’ of England Test captaincy

Cricket365
November 15, 2019

Ben Stokes has no desire to be England captain, saying: “It’s just not one of those things I’m desperate to do.”

Stokes admitted to The Times earlier this week that he “could never say no” to the job but told the BBC Today programme that he would be concerned about the responsibility on his shoulders becoming too much to bear.

England’s talismanic all-rounder insists he is content with his role in the side as well as his status as deputy to Test skipper Joe Root.

“That’s not an aspiration of mine,” Stokes said of the captaincy. “It’s just not one of those things I’m desperate to do. I’m very happy at the moment being vice-captain, we’ve got a great leader in Joe.

“You never know how you handle the pressure of being England captain unless you do it. Being the Test captain of England – so much pressure comes with it.

“It’s a huge burden to carry because everything falls back on you, especially if it goes bad, and you never know how you’ll handle that pressure until you walk out on to the field as England captain.

“So I’ve got no idea how I’d handle it if I did it but, as I say, it’s not an aspiration of mine.”

Stokes is in the prime of his professional career and has enjoyed an incredible past few months, starring in England’s historic World Cup triumph and the drawn Ashes series.

READ: Root urges patience as England seek new Test match approach

But when he does eventually retire, Stokes envisages remaining in cricket and would welcome a coaching role.

He added: “I guess there always comes a time when you have to start seriously thinking about it and I always say I’d love to be a coach in the future.

“I can’t ever see myself just completely disconnecting myself away from the game as some people have.

“But I’m still only 28, I have got plenty of years in the tank hopefully. But I’d love to stay in the game somehow and if that was as a coach I’d love to do that.”