England limited-overs coach Matthew Mott hopes he can lure Ben Stokes out of ODI retirement ahead of the Cricket World Cup in 2023.
Star all-rounder Stokes called an end to his 50-over international career in July as he suggested the workload amid a packed schedule was "unsustainable" alongside his Test captaincy.
The 31-year-old did not bow out of the shortest format, though, and proved his white-ball worth with a vital 52 not out in Sunday's T20 World Cup final victory over Pakistan.
Stokes became just the third player to score 50-plus runs in finals of both an ODI World Cup and a T20 World Cup, having starred against New Zealand in the dramatic Lord's showpiece in 2019.
England are the first side to boast duel limited-overs titles at the same time, and Mott hopes he can convince Stokes to return to defend their ODI crown in India next year.
"When he spoke to me about his ODI retirement, one of the first things I said was that I'd back any decision he made," Mott told Sky Sports.
"He didn't necessarily have to retire, he could just not play 50 overs for a while. I did say 'you could always un-retire'. It's his decision. He'll do what's right for English cricket and he always has.
"It's going to be a World Cup year and we don't play much T20 cricket for a while but it will be a decision that's up to him. The more we can get him is great. He's a world-class player.
"He's doing an amazing job with the Test captaincy but he is a very big cog in the wheel when he comes back to white ball. I can't speak more highly of the way he's been around this group."
Stokes and Sam Curran, who took the second-most wickets by a pace bowler (13) at an edition of the T20 World Cup, both delivered on the biggest stage for England.
But Mott also pinpointed the influential figures of Reece Topley and Jonny Bairstow, who both missed the tournament in Australia due to injury.
"Reece Topley was a big part of our preparation for here," the Australian added. "I was absolutely gutted for him, such an innocuous injury. Seeing him leave our group was hard.
"I must admit he was one of the first blokes I thought of (after England's win) – and Jonny as well.
"Those guys, it's hard for them when you prepare so much to do something like this, and they don't come round that often, to have to miss that opportunity is heartbreaking."
England's success Down Under could be somewhat credited to Australia, though, given Mott was partnered by Mike Hussey and David Saker in his coaching setup.
"Players make coaches, coaches don't make players at this level," Mott continued "There's no doubt it was a real advantage in Australia to have some Australian coaches around.
"A lot of people just said I got my mates in to do the role. But both of those appointments were suggested by players within our group and had worked with both of them before."
‘Stokes will come back,’ says McCullum after England captain’s injury-hit Pakistan tour
England coach Brendon McCullum backed ‘hurting’ Ben Stokes to come back stronger after they fell to a 2-1 defeat in the Test series in Pakistan on the captain’s return from a hamstring injury.
Stokes had missed the historic first Test in Multan that England won by an innings and 47 runs, but he recovered after a two-month lay-off to make himself available ahead of the second Test.
On a reused pitch in Multan, England fell to a 152-run defeat to the hosts with the 33-year-old all-rounder managing 1 and 37 with the bat and bowling just 10 overs without a wicket.
Stokes did not have much luck in the third Test either, collecting just 15 runs over the two innings as Pakistan made it back-to-back wins to win the three-match series.
“He's disappointed but he's our skipper and we know he's tough," McCullum told BBC Sport.
"He'll make sure he'll come back. It's our job to make sure we wrap our arms around him and help him along the way."
Asalanka leads Sri Lanka to ODI series win over West Indies
Sri Lanka wrapped up the ODI series against the West Indies with a five-wicket victory in Pallekele.
The hosts successfully chased down their opponents' total of 189, giving them an unassailable 2-0 in the three-match series.
Sri Lanka controlled the early powerplay - Asitha Fernando (3-35) and Maheesh Theekshana (3-25) took two wickets apiece to leave the tourists at 31-4 in the ninth over.
Wanindu Hasaranga (4-40) then claimed three of his four wickets as Roston Chase, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh and Alzarri Joseph were all dismissed in the space of 14 balls.
However, Sherfane Rutherford (80 off 82 balls) and Gudakesh Motie (50 not out) steadied the ship to take the Windies from 58-8 to 189.
Although Joseph claimed Avishka Fernando (9) in the fourth over, Nishan Madushka and Sadeera Samarawickrama both chipped in with contributions of 38 to get the hosts to 112-4.
Skipper Charith Asalanka (62 not out) led the charge thereon, while Kamindu Mendis (11) comfortably got them over the line with 34 balls remaining.
Data Debrief: Rutherford-Motie historic stand proves academic for tourists
West Indies were looking to level the series, but their hopes were not aided by Sri Lanka's impressive bowling.
Rutherford and Motie did their best. Their partnership brought 119 runs, which is their nation's highest ninth-wicket stand in ODI history, breaking the previous record of 85 between Yannic Cariah and Alzarri Joseph.
However, it ultimately proved in vain as the hosts secured the series with a game to spare.
'I was a tired, grumpy old man' - Stokes apologised to England team-mates after Pakistan defeat
Ben Stokes says he apologised to his England team-mates after his frustrations were evident during the second-Test defeat by Pakistan.
The hosts levelled the three-Test series on Thursday after wrapping up a 152-run win in Multan.
However, it could have been a different story but for fielding errors at crucial stages for the visitors, Jamie Smith and Joe Root notably dropping catches to dismiss Salman Agha, whose subsequent knock of 63 helped Pakistan seal victory with a day to spare.
Stokes, who returned to action following a hamstring injury, could not hide his frustration during a difficult day for England, but insisted he would not let his emotions get the better of him again.
"No one means to drop catches, but it just proves how important catches are in these subcontinent conditions, they don't come along that often," he told Sky Sports.
"I actually apologised to the group last night. It's the first time in my captaincy that I've let my emotions and how I was feeling with the way the game was unfolding show in my body language.
"I owned up to that and was very annoyed at myself for letting that out. It's something that I don't want to do or be seen to be doing, so I apologised to the group about that.
"Poor old me, I was a tired, grumpy old man last night! You won't see that happen again."
However, England coach Brendon McCullum defended the actions of his skipper.
"We all know how passionate Ben is, how much it means for him to play for England," he said.
"We've seen that through his bloody-mindedness to get back from injury, which was significant, and to do so in a nine-week timeframe and to have his first TM [Test match] in extreme conditions, 40 degrees, and be able to give what he gave to the side.
"I think, maybe, that's where some of that frustration led to - certainly, it wasn't directed at any of the players. It was more about trying to assess the rhythm of the game, and to impact on it."
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