Stokes ‘hurting’ with how Pak series has unfolded, says McCullum
England head coach Brendon McCullum said captain Ben Stokes will be "hurting" after the 2-1 Test series defeat against Pakistan.
The new managing director of England men’s cricket Rob Key has held talks with pace bowling veterans Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad over their possible Test cricket recall, and is also expected to get in touch with the all-rounder Ben Stokes in order to gather his views about captaincy.
Anderson and Broad, who are one of the most successful England pacers to have ever represented the national team – have declared their intention to return to the side after being axed ahead of the three-Test series in the Caribbean, Stokes has emerged as the likely candidate for the post of England captain after Joe Root stepped down recently following a five-year stint of leading the side.
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England have a challenging summer Test season ahead of them beginning with the three-Test series against New Zealand from June 2 and Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad could play a vital role in the series if selected.
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A report in dailymail.co.uk said on Wednesday that it understood that Key had contacted the two pacers who were “controversially axed for the 1-0 defeat by West Indies last month before he was officially unveiled as the successor to Ashley Giles”.
The pace bowling stalwarts have a collective tally of a mind boggling 1,177 Test wickets and Key “checked their availability for the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s on June 2”, as per the report.
Key’s stance on the two pace bowlers is in contrast to Andrew Strauss, who held the role of ECB managing director on an interim basis after the departure of Ashley Giles. Giles left the position after three years, following the debacle of the Ashes, where England lost 4-0 away in Australia.
The reports also said that Key will likely get in touch with England vice-captain Stokes this week.
(Inputs from IANS)
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