BEN STOKES will next month take a step closer to a coaching career when he helps to guide England’s Lions.
Test captain Stokes will join head coach Andrew Flintoff’s backroom staff for a series of white-ball matches against Pakistan’s second string in the UAE.
Ben Stokes has taken a step closer to coachingCredit: Getty
Another ex-England player, , will also be a coach for part of the trip. Moeen confirmed he has come out of county playing retirement and signed for Yorkshire.
Stokes’ time in the UAE will also allow him to continue rehabbing from the groin injury he suffered during the Fifth Test of England’s 4-1 defeat.
Stokes is contracted to until the end of next summer’s Ashes series – when he will be 36.
He hardly plays any cricket apart from Tests, having withdrawn from England white-ball selection and turned his back on the big money offered by T20 franchises.
When he finishes playing, he is expected to favour a career in coaching – staying in the dressing-room environment he loves – rather than TV and media.
He worked alongside Flintoff for Northern Superchargers in last year’s Hundred in a ‘mentor’ role.
Flintoff’s coaching team also includes former women’s wicketkeeper Sarah Taylor, Amar Rashid, brother of Adil, former South African batsman Neil McKenzie and the ECB’s new fast bowling lead, Troy Cooley.
Moeen, 38, will play in the for Yorkshire after previously quitting county cricket.
Yorkshire were embroiled in a racist scandal following claims by former player Azeem Rafiq but Moeen said things have changed, insisting: “They have done a fantastic job integrating with society.”
It will allow him to play some games alongside his inseparable friend, Adil Rashid.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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