World Cup 2023 | Ben Stokes' comeback to ODIs confirmed ahead of marquee event

England's chances at the World Cup scheduled in India later this year received a major boost on Wednesday with the return of Test skipper Ben Stokes to the 50-over format. The all-rounder has decided to come out of retirement in ODIs and will feature in the series against New Zealand next month. After playing 105 ODIs for England, Stokes had stood down from the format last year stating that he wouldn’t be able to give his best across all three formats. 

Head coach Matthew Mott and captain Jos Buttler were both persistent in their desire to persuade Stokes to come back to the 50-over side as was revealed by the former in a recent statement. The 32-year-old has built a reputation as the finest big match player of the generation and played game-changing knocks in the finals of the World Cup in 2019 and World T20 in 2023.  

The all-rounder is included in the team for the upcoming series against New Zealand. Also, England’s national selector Luke Wright has made it clear that they would be going into the World Cup with the same lineup. 

“This is the squad we are going to put forward. The return of Ben Stokes only adds to that quality with his match-winning ability and leadership. I am certain that every fan will enjoy seeing him back in an England ODI shirt again,” Wright stated in an official release. 

Meanwhile, Jonny Bairstow also earned a recall to the ODI team while Gus Atkinson earned his maiden ODI call-up.