Ben Stokes has warned star players like Jofra Archer could be tempted to walk away from international cricket if England play hard-ball over the Indian Premier League.
Five months on from their Ashes disappointment, England are finally ready to return to the Test arena against New Zealand at Lord’s this week, but Archer will be conspicuous by his absence on Thursday.
The pace bowler played a full part in the IPL with Rajasthan Royals and is now taking time off at his home in Barbados before a potential return later in the Rothesay series.
The idea that he will sit out the first Test of the summer, a vitally important match as Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum look to right some of the winter’s wrongs, has jarred with those who fear the growing primacy of franchise formats.
Former England skippers Michael Atherton and Michael Vaughan are among those to raise question marks over the situation, while ex-New Zealand bowler Simon Doull called the scenario “absolutely ludicrous”.
But Stokes suggested it would be a risky gambit to order the most in-demand short-form players back for every red-ball assignment – and one that may ultimately drive them away.
Archer has a lucrative central contract with the England and Wales Cricket Board, which also supported him throughout five lean years of injury trouble, but he is in huge demand on the T20 circuit and would not struggle to net big fees across the globe as a freelancer.
“I totally understand people’s frustrations around it, but there is another side to it,” Stokes said.
“There is a situation where it could get messy and players like Jofra might not play for England again if you handle it in a different way, and that is not good for anyone. Jofra has shown that he’s committed and loves playing for England. Just because he’s not available for this first Test match does not change that.
“It’s completely different now. There are opportunities for cricketers now that weren’t there 10, 15, 20 years ago. In an ideal situation it would be unbelievably great to have everyone who you want available at every single opportunity but that is not the way of cricket at the moment. There is so much more out there for players.
“I get both sides of the story – the ‘why is Jof not here?’ – but I also understand that there are other opportunities and you want players to be able to do them and also to play for England.”
Jacob Bethell was with IPL champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the majority of the IPL but will be part of the England side at Lord’s.
Even so, he comes in with no meaningful red-ball practice under his belt since his stunning Ashes century in Sydney in mid-January.
“The first time I saw Beth was two days ago,” admitted Stokes, who led the majority of the squad in a training camp at Loughborough last week.
“It’s just one of those things. You have your number three, he has a great couple of games out in Australia, then he spends nine or 10 weeks out in India and you are seeing him two days before a Test match.
“That is almost becoming the norm. The game is changing all the time. There are some things you have to roll with and accept, it is what it is.”
England have yet to confirm their XI as they wait to see how much play is lost to rain, with gloomy forecasts for Thursday and parts of Friday, but Gus Atkinson remains favoured to edge out the uncapped Sonny Baker.
