Veteran England wicketkeeper-batter Jonny Bairstow has backed the one-day international format following Ben Stokes’ retirement from the same. He also declared his commitment to all three formats of the game and praised 50-over cricket as well. England’s Test captain and all-rounder Ben Stokes recently announced his retirement from ODI cricket this week, giving an unsustainable schedule. Stokes, the key part of England’s 2019 World Cup squad, played his last 50-over game for England against South Africa at Chester-Le-Street on July 19 as well.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Bairstow said: “Naturally there are challenges, we’ve seen that over a period of time now. We only have to look at the Tests this summer where there was a one-day squad over in Holland at the same time. Even at the back-end of this summer, there are the seven T20s in Pakistan that pretty much overlap with the last Test match. I will be going all out for as long as I can. In the near future, I don’t see myself making a choice. I love being part of all three squads.”

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Ben Stokes’ retirement from ODI cricket has become a wake-up call for the cricketing fraternity, with former players questioning the schedule also. The likes of Wasim Akram and Usman Khawaja have also shared their doubts about the sustainability of the 50-over format also.

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“I think it is a really good format. The journey we have been on as a group to get to the 2019 World Cup was amazing. I also think that 50-over cricket is in some ways a stepping stone into Test cricket. You get worked over for longer, you sometimes have to grind out difficult periods and play good cricket shots. The middle overs, especially, are a lot like Test cricket,” Jonny Bairstow concluded.