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Former England National Cricket Team skipper Ben Stokes has been enjoying his time out of international cricket after he retired earlier in June following the third Test match against the New Zealand side. He has shared his first insight into Stephen Fleming becoming the new Test head coach of the side after Brendon McCullum was sacked from the Test role.
Ben Stokes has also shown interest in taking up the coaching role in the future, as he loves coaching, and once he finishes his career and retires from all forms of cricket, he will surely be interested in taking up the coaching role of the Three Lions. Stokes has been a fantastic Test captain and has led the side well over the years.
Ben Stokes reacts to Stephen Fleming becoming England's new head coach
Ben Stokes, along with his former teammates Stuart Broad and Jos Buttler, was on a podcast show named 'For The Love Of Cricket' and shared his views on Fleming becoming the head coach of the Three Lions. He said:
"And I think, you know, he's[Joe Root] gonna really enjoy it with Flem. He's a great man. I've worked with Flem before. But I told Joe, my only worry is just you. That's all I really care about now with Rooty because I've seen what he went through and how much he put himself through."
"For someone like Joe, he's always put the team first. He always comes second. That's my only concern with it. Knowing what he went through the last time he was in charge of the team, I don't want to see that ever happen again because I care for Joe a lot."
"But I wish him all the success in the world. I'm sure he's going to do great, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the team does going forward."
Ben Stokes believes Stephen Fleming has a hard time in hand
Ben Stokes also shed light that Stephen Fleming, during his initial time as the head coach, will have to take much responsibility. He also talked about Joe Root being one of the most influential people in the dressing room for the achievements he had. Fleming and Root will do well, as the latter has an amazing ability to gel with anyone.
"I think Flem's going to have to take a lot of that on his shoulders initially. You think about what Root's done as a player when I was captain—the runs he scored, what he achieved on the field, how influential he was within the group, especially for the younger guys coming through."
"He's just someone who's amazing to have in your dressing room. Whether it's someone who's come into the team for the first time or someone who's been there for ages, you're always going to go to Joe Root and just talk."
Ben Stokes shares relationship with Joe Root
Ben Stokes answers that he did not talk with Root about batting, as he is one of the greats of the game and he could never understand Root’s batting brain because it is very sharp and barely understandable. He also shared his first summer of playing under Root, who was the captain at that time, and how he helped him in the team.
"I don't talk to him about batting because I just can't comprehend what his mind goes through. It's ridiculous. Those greats just think differently. It's like they can see things happening before they happen. I could never understand his batting brain because he's just that good."
"He was amazing for me. He was so important in my first couple of months and my first summer as captain. Considering he'd done the job for six years, we went in a completely different direction with the team and the style of play, and he bought into it. That says a lot about him."
