Ben Stokes has made it clear that he would love nothing more than to take on a coaching role with the England cricket team in the future. In a candid interview on the "For The Love of Cricket" podcast, hosted by his former teammates Stuart Broad and Jos Buttler, the 35‑year‑old all‑rounder opened up about his retirement, his long‑term ambitions and his thoughts on the direction of the England Test side. Stokes announced his retirement from international cricket shortly after England suffered a 2‑1 series defeat to New Zealand in June, a loss that followed a disappointing 4‑1 Ashes defeat to Australia earlier in the winter. He also stepped down as Test captain, ending a four‑year spell at the helm that began in 2022.

In the podcast, which was his first extensive interview since hanging up his boots, Stokes confirmed that his decision to retire was final and he has no intention of returning to the playing arena. "I want to be a coach," Stokes said plainly.

"I know what I want to do in terms of staying within the game – which is to be a coach. Would I love to be coach of England one day? Absolutely.

I would love to be able to do that. Do I think it’s going to happen? I don’t know. No idea.

Then, further on from that, I don’t know. I just really like the idea of being, again, in some form of leadership away from playing." He went on to explain that his desire to move into a leadership position stems from the satisfaction he derived while captaining the side and working closely with head coach Brendon McCullum. Stokes and McCullum together reshaped England’s playing style, introducing a more aggressive, fearless brand of cricket that produced some memorable victories. The former New Zealand captain’s departure from the Test role was announced just two weeks after Stokes announced his own retirement, during the fourth day of England’s third Test at Trent Bridge.

When asked about McCullum’s exit, Stokes admitted he was surprised. "If I hadn’t made the decision that I made four weeks ago, Baz would still be coach," he said, referring to McCullum by his nickname. He recounted the informal conversation they had over toast: "When I told Baz about my retirement he was making toast and I just went ‘oh, I’m done’.

I’d obviously had discussions with him anyway and then told him over toast. Then he was like ‘yeah, I’ve been given the tap on the shoulder’ and I was like ‘oh’. But he’s still very excited and very happy to be moving forward with the white‑ball side because he’s doing a very good job there." Stokes also weighed in on the new era for England’s Test team, following the appointment of former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming as head coach and the re‑appointment of Joe Root as captain.

He said he had spoken to Root when the news broke and expressed his full support for his former teammate’s second stint in the role. However, Stokes also confessed a personal concern for Root, recalling the heavy burden Root carried during his first spell as captain. "I love Rooty.

I wish him nothing but success," Stokes said. "I hope he goes on to achieve amazing things in his role of captain, and I think he’s going to really enjoy it with Flem. He’s a great man.

I’ve worked with Flem before. But I told Joe: ‘my only worry is you’. And that’s all I really care about now with Rooty just because I saw what he went through and how much he put himself through.

He always put the team first; he always came second. That is just my only concern with it: knowing what he went through last time he was in charge of the team because I don’t want to see that ever happen again because I care for Joe a lot." While praising Root’s character, Stokes did not shy away from questioning the decision not to hand the Test captaincy to Harry Brook, the current white‑ball captain and Test vice‑captain. England’s managing director, Rob Key, has previously suggested that the timing is not right for Brook to take the Test role, but that his "time will come".

Stokes, however, felt the message sent to Brook was confusing. "If you think someone is going to be a good captain or a good leader, just give it to them," Stokes argued. "Brooky was made vice‑captain. I’m not there anymore but even when I missed that Test match against New Zealand I was like ‘why is Brooky not captain?

He’s vice‑captain.’ I understood the reasoning why they were saying it, but I was still like, what message is that sending to him? He’s vice‑captain and the captain is not playing but he’s not captain.

Then the same again here. I had no leadership or captaincy experience when I took over. It was just thought I was going to be a good captain." Stokes also addressed speculation that he might return for the home Ashes series next summer. When asked whether he would consider a comeback, he was unequivocal.

"I never once thought, ‘I’m just going to give it up and just keep going as a player’," he said. "I’m 35. If I’m not going to be captain, I think I’d find it tough to do it. Not saying because I’d find it tough to be led by someone else.

I just think because I’ve given so much of this part of my career to my job, if I’m going to play for England it’s going to be as captain. I was very comfortable retiring from playing and not thinking about playing for England." When pressed on whether his retirement was definitive, Stokes answered with a firm "Defo" – short for "definitely" – leaving no doubt that his playing days are behind him.

Looking ahead, Stokes’ vision for his post‑playing career involves gaining coaching experience, possibly starting at the county level before aspiring to a senior role with England. He acknowledges that the pathway to becoming head coach is highly competitive and that success will depend on continual learning, networking, and delivering results wherever he begins his coaching journey. In summary, Ben Stokes has confirmed his ambition to transition into coaching, expressed admiration and concern for Joe Root’s upcoming captaincy, and openly criticized the handling of Harry Brook’s leadership prospects. He also ruled out any return to the playing side, emphasizing that his focus now lies entirely on contributing to the game from the sidelines.