
Tags: Cricket, Benjamin Stokes, England, Icc Test Championship, James Anderson, Stuart Broad
Ben Stokes has told England chiefs he wants James Anderson and Stuart Broad back in the Test team under his captaincy.
The new skipper believes it is too soon to dispense with the fast-bowling expertise of the duo who between them have taken 1,177 wickets in the five-day international game.
Broad, 35, looks set to add to his 152 caps, and 39-year-old Anderson can expect to boost his total of 169 Test appearances in the upcoming series against New Zealand.
That is set to mark Stokes' debut as England's new full-time Test captain, with the first match beginning on June 2 at Lord's.
Joe Root's successor made it an urgent matter when he spoke to new England managing director Rob Key, after the pace pair were left out for the recent West Indies series and used sparingly in the Ashes.
"When I met Ben Stokes the other day, one of the first things he said was, 'Jimmy and Broady are back'," Key said.
"I said, 'Absolutely, no problem'. Now that might have been a bit of a problem if I didn't think that, but I was on exactly the same page.
"That wasn't much of a debate, we both agreed. I sat with Broady a week and a half ago and Jimmy last night. They're both keen and ready to go."