Ben Stokes: England should allow players to express themselves
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Version 0 of 1. The England all-rounder Ben Stokes has urged whoever the England and Wales Cricket Board appoint as the new head coach to take a leaf out of Australia's book when it comes to letting players express themselves. Stokes, who is currently at least a month away from returning to fitness after a self-inflicted wrist injury caused when punching a locker during England's final match of the pre-World Twenty20 Caribbean tour last month, wants Andy Flower's replacement to allow him to continue to play his own way. "Australia were ultra-positive in what they did, batting, bowling, fielding," said Stokes. "Darren Lehmann gave them the opportunity to just go out and express themselves and play the way they wanted to play. And it worked for them. That's how I play my cricket." Should the new England coach follow that blueprint? "I hope so. I hope whoever gets the job doesn't change the way that it's gone from a coach-to-player point of view. I hope they don't come in and try to change things, and let you get on with it." Stokes was talking from a personal point of view rather than the team as a whole, but did also suggest that the dressing room dynamic should not be tinkered with too much. "Every coach I've had to date has let me get on with the things I want to do, unless there are certain things that they want to change," he said. "From a team point of view I feel, obviously I haven't been in the England dressing room that long, it's a tight unit and I don't think that should be disturbed." The 23-year-old – who joined the ranks of those on tour to say they had "no issue" with Kevin Pietersen: "In and around the dressing room I found him absolutely fine" – was one of the few bright spots in a miserable winter for English cricket, that locker incident notwithstanding. With Sri Lanka and India looming this summer and a 50-over World Cup on the horizon, Stokes is hopeful that the team can mentally recover from a harrowing six months. "If we had had a good winter, won the Ashes, won the World Cup, we'd still have to level our heads and be prepared for what's in front of us," he said. "It's the same with success and failure. There's always the momentum thing, but you just have to put whatever happened in the past behind you." Despite the broken wrist meaning he has not picked up a bat in anger since returning from the Caribbean, Stokes is hopeful that he can return to action in time to force his way into the reckoning for a place in the England side to face Sri Lanka at the end of May. "I haven't ruled myself out of anything England-wise," he said. "Whenever I do get back on the pitch I need to make sure I find some form and make sure I'm in the selectors' eyes." And can he hit the ground running? "It's my job, so I don't think I'll forget how to do it." |