Former England skipper Ben Stokes said he has no regrets after veteran fast bowler James Anderson was not included in Ashes squad for the 2025-26 series. Stokes admitted Anderson was left disappointment after his snub as he has done a fabulous job for England in the last two decades.

Anderson’s swansong came in the first Test between England and West Indies at Lord’s, where he concluded an international career spanning 188 Tests in which he took 704 wickets.

Meanwhile, England suffered a 4-1 Test series loss against Australia in the Ashes. 

“I’m sure there’s going to be disappointment there from Jimmy, ’cause it was probably not a nice thing to be able to hear for someone who’s done so much for the game. But again, you know, the game moves on from people. The game’s moved on from him, the game’s moved on from me, it always will. But that shouldn’t take away what he’s done for English cricket. I mean, he’s still… is he captain in Lancs, still playing for Lancs? Again, he just loves playing cricket. And, you know, should never forget what he did for England in that shirt,” said Stokes on For the Love of Cricket podcast.

Stokes admitted it was a tough call to leave out Anderson from the Ashes squad but he had to take such a selection call as a leader.

“Wasn’t made overnight, no. But again, you know, when you’re in those roles of leadership, you’ve got to be able to make those decisions and stand by them and live by them,” Stokes said.

“And if people don’t think they’re right, that’s absolutely fine, because everyone is able to have an opinion on that kind of stuff. But look, I still see Jimmy as someone who I got very close with, played a lot of cricket with Jimmy, and, you know, he’s still doing what he does. But no, I don’t… I don’t regret the decision that we made, because we did it for what we thought was going to be a positive outcome for us in the buildup to going out to Australia,” he added.

After Stokes’ retirement, Joe Root has been re-appointed as England’s Test skipper.