Managing Director of England Men's Cricket Rob Key has refused to rule out the possibility of Ben Stokes reversing his decision to retire from ODI cricket so he can feature in the World Cup title defence in India next year.
Stokes made the announcement in July, stating that England's current schedule is "unsustainable" and that it was "time for someone else to progress as a cricketer and make incredible memories".
The all-rounder was, of course, named player of the match in the final when England won the 50-over World Cup on home soil back in 2019 after scoring an unbeaten 84, with Eoin Morgan's side ultimately winning on the boundary countback rule after a dramatic super over.
And after Stokes helped England win another trophy with an unbeaten 52 in the T20 World Cup final on Sunday, white-ball coach Matthew Mott has said he hopes to persuade him to unretire for next year's 50-over World Cup.
"I would absolutely ask him back," Mott said "When he retired from ODI cricket I think it was a good decision and the right one being Test captain and having a lot on his plate.
"One of the first things I said was that I'd back any decision he made but I said to him he didn't necessarily have to retire, he could just not play 50-overs for a while. I did say he could always unretire. That's his decision."
And when asked about the prospect of Stokes unretiring for next year's World Cup, Key told Sky Sports: "Nothing is forever, but who knows what will happen. At the moment, we just try to enjoy what we've done and then we'll think about Test cricket.
"Ben Stokes will be thinking about Test cricket, and I don't want him to worry about anything else apart from what is in front of him now, which is the Test series in Pakistan. Then you've got New Zealand and then you've got Australia after that.
"He doesn't have to worry about anything else - what will be, will be. I'll have every conversation with anyone really, it doesn't matter.
"I don't think you ever rule anything out, but at the moment we're just trying to enjoy what we've done so far. I'm sure he's enjoying it as much as he possibly can."
