Australia coach thinks Ben Stokes may return for 2027 Ashes

Australia coach Andrew McDonald believes former England captain Ben Stokes may be talked out of retirement and return for next year's Ashes series.

Stokes retired from Test cricket following England's series defeat to New Zealand last month, with the side currently languishing in seventh place on the ICC World Test Championship standings ahead of an upcoming home series with Pakistan.

The experienced all-rounder has since turned out for domestic side Durham in a pair of appearances in England's 50-over competition and the 35-year-old showed he hadn't lost any of his touch with the bat as he contributed scores of 108* and 73* in consecutive victories for his team.

While McDonald confirmed he had no inside word on Stokes' future at international level, the Australia coach did suggest he would not be surprised if the former England skipper played a part in next year's Ashes.

"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," McDonald said on Australian radio station SEN.

"If you're looking at promoting that series, that's probably the angle that you would want, that he comes out of retirement."

Stokes previously reversed his retirement from ODI cricket in 2022 to return for England's unsuccessful title defence at the 2023 edition of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, though the star all-rounder recently suggested he would stick with his decision regardless of any future approaches from team management.

The fact England are on the lookout for a new Test coach following the recent departure of Stokes' long-time confidant Brendon McCullum further clouds the situation, with McDonald suggesting he is keeping a close eye on proceedings ahead of the battle for the urn.

"To me, he (Stokes) has still got a lot of good cricket left in him. It'll be a fascinating watch. I think that whoever the new head coach that comes in potentially has a conversation with him," McDonald noted.

"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.

"Or there might be an opportunity for that new head coach to potentially twist his arm and bring him back in.

"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."

England recently unveiled the schedule for the 2027 Ashes series, with Trent Bridge in Nottingham to host the opening match of the five-game series from June 18 ahead of further Test at Lord's, Edgbaston, The Rose Bowl and The Oval.

Ashes series schedule:

First Test - June 18-22, Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Second Test - June 30 - July 4, Lord's, London
Third Test - July 8-12, Edgbaston, Birmingham
Fourth Test - July 21-25, Rose Bowl, Southampton
Fifth Test - July 29 - August 2, The Oval, London