Michael Vaughan slams Tim Paine for his ‘ridiculous remarks’ on Ben Stokes’ U-turn on ODI retirement

Two former captains share different views on Ben Stokes' decision to unretire from ODIs and make himself available for the World Cup later this year. While former Ashes-winning Aussie captain Tim Paine calls this a ‘selfish’ decision, Vaughan, another Ashes winner, slammed Paine for the same, calling Stokes a complete team player.

Following the Ashes 2023, reports in the British media suggested that England selectors are contemplating requesting Stokes to come out of ODI retirement and play this year’s 50-over spectacle. For that, even ODI captain Jos Buttler has had conversations with Stokes around this.

All the rumours came true when Luke Wright - the England selector, earlier this week, announced Stokes has decided to unretire from ODIs and will play the World Cup. However, it led to Harry Brook’s exclusion from the provisional squad for the New Zealand ODIs and WC, which irked some experts, with Paine being one.

Speaking on SEN Tasmania, Paine labelled this call selfish, saying, ‘me (for Stokes) is written all over it. He slammed the English Test captain for deciding to retire and unretire per his convenience, even if it means dropping off a regular player from the side – Brooks in this context.

“Ben Stokes coming out of one-day retirement, I found that interesting. It was a bit of, ‘Me, me, me’, there isn’t it? It was, ‘I’ll pick and I’ll choose where I want to play and when I want to play’, and, ‘I’ll play in the big tournaments’," said Paine speaking to SEN Tasmania.

“The guys who played for 12 months, ‘Sorry, thanks. But can you go and sit on the bench because I want to play now?’" he added.

Vaughan slams Paine for ‘poor’ take

Michael Vaughan, known for being vocal about his thoughts, slammed Paine, saying knowing Ben Stokes, he is the most selfless cricketer in the English dressing room and someone who always thinks about the team first.

“Ben Stokes is the most selfless cricketer I have ever known .. He puts Team before himself more than any other player .. Ridiculous suggestion from Tim ..,” Vaughan replied to a tweet mentioning Paine’s statement.

Meanwhile, England’s batting strengthened after Stokes’ inclusion, who is said to be playing as a proper batter unless cleared to bowl by team doctors and management.

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