Ben Stokes performed late U-turn on retirement plan after Brendon McCullum intervention

Ben Stokes changed his mind about announcing his England retirement after a late intervention from head coach Brendon McCullum.

Stokes called time on his international career on day four of the third Test between England and New Zealand.

The 35-year-old was bowling a lengthy spell at the time of the announcement, and took the wicket of Zak Foulkes with his first ball after that announcement.

He told BBC's Test Match Special after the close of play that he had been having doubts about staying in international cricket over 'the last six months, 12 months'.

"There's been certain moments where I felt like I haven't loved it [cricket]," he explained. "My time last week back at Durham, there wasn't a moment when I didn't.

Ben Stokes (pictured alongside Jofra Archer) has played 379 matches for England (Image: Getty)

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"So being able to compare what it was like being back at my county, where everything started and people who I grew up with, and to compare it to here, where I've always loved, not to feel like that sense of love and completeness and enjoyment, then you just know."

McCullum reveals Stokes retirement intervention

Stokes did raise eyebrows on his penultimate day as an international cricketer when he decided to open the batting in England's fourth-innings chase of 373.

The Durham all-rounder had previously opened the batting on two occasions, scoring 78 not out and 57 not out against the West Indies in 2020 and 2024 respectively.

Stokes' objective was clear as, on his first ball, he charged down the pitch and connected sweetly with a back foot cover drive, only to find a New Zealand fielder.

His second shot was an attempted reverse sweep that went straight through to wicket-keeper Tom Blundell, before he smashed Foulkes for six over long-off in the second over.

Stokes was eventually out for 30 off just 20 balls, caught at short mid-on by Daryl Mitchell, and England were bowled out for 212 to lose the series 2-1 and the match by 160 runs.

Stokes scored 30 in his final Test match innings (Image: Getty)

England, and particularly vice-captain Harry Brook, received criticism for their ultra-attacking batting at the end of day four, which left them on 103 for four chasing 373.

But speaking to BBC's Dan Norcross, McCullum stated that the plan was always to bat aggressively, as it was felt that the pitch conditions would change sufficiently on day five to make scoring at a more standard Test match run rate much more difficult.

And he revealed that Stokes had originally decided to announce his international retirement at close of play on day four but that, once it was decided he would open, McCullum managed to convince him to make the announcement earlier.

"That was a moving target, a little bit," he said. "And I'll take a little bit of blame for that too.

"Stokesy was happy to just keep playing. He was going to announce it at the end of the fourth evening.

"But tactically, we wanted Stokesy to go up to the top of the order and hopefully be able to maximise the opportunity, to give ourselves the chance to get the most amount of runs last night - knowing that, on a turgid pitch on day five, when the conditions are at their most extreme, trying to find a cruising speed in terms of scoring rate was going to be quite difficult without risk.

"So we knew he was going to open the batting. And I said to him, 'Stokesy, you've had such an amazing career. You've been able to inspire so many people around England and around the world, that they would love to say goodbye to you'.

"Amongst us, as a team, we came up with the idea that it was important to let people know, so that they can celebrate and acknowledge and show their appreciation and support for what Stokesy has meant to them.

"As a cricketer, you don't really feel it at the time. But that moment - the guard of honour, the appreciation - that's a really important moment to be able to draw a line in the sand on your career and move on to the next chapter of your life.

"We thought that was vitally important as well. Stokesy was incredibly appreciative of it too. It was never perfect, in terms of timing, but the way it worked out... and Stokesy got a wicket with the first ball after it was announced. It probably summed up Stokesy!"