'Fairytale would be if Stokes comes back out of retirement for Ashes'

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald feels it would be a 'fairytale' if Ben Stokes reverses his retirement and features in the next Ashes series, to be held in June-August 2027 in England. Stokes made a swift exit from the Test side following the home Tests against New Zealand - which ended up being the first home series that England lost under the captain-coach duo of Stokes and Brendon McCullum.

"I think the fairytale would be that he comes back out of retirement and takes on one more Ashes and builds a lot of hype on the way in," Australia's coach told radio station SEN on Wednesday (July 29). "If you're looking at promoting that series, that's probably the angle that you would want, that he comes out of retirement."

Stokes's retirement came in the aftermath of a fresh round of controversy that saw him suspended for the second Test of the three-match series. After a big win in the series opener at Lord's, Stokes was present at a late night bar altercation where a security personnel of the team was hurt. Stokes wasn't personally involved in the fracas but he and Gus Atkinson were out at the pub and were seen to have broken the team curfew that was recently put in place.

The pair was suspended for the second Test but returned for the final game, before which Stokes apologised to his teammates. During the course of that fixture, he announced that it would be his last. Following that, Brendon McCullum - who tried to talk him out of this decision, was also stood down as the Test team coach. Stokes meanwhile, has gone on to play List A cricket for Durham, even slamming a swift century.

"To me, he's still got a lot of good cricket left in him," McDonald opined. "It'll be a fascinating watch. I think that whoever the new head coach that comes in potentially has a conversation with him. We don't know why Ben left, I don't think there's been anything on the record around the definitive reason as to why. He may have just called it a day on Test cricket and that's it, so there might be a full stop there."

Stokes walked away with the idea that the decision to retire was the 'best thing for me right now', but McDonald wondered if McCullum's replacement could change his mind. "There might be an opportunity for that new head coach to potentially twist his arm and bring him back in," McDonald said.

If that was not to be, the Aussie coach doffed his hat to stellar career that has had some incredible moments involving his team at the other end. "But if it ends now, he's had a wonderful career in terms of what he's brought to the game, his impact in certain innings and moments in time. It will age pretty well for him to look back on."

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