England test captain Ben Stokes said he opted out of the bidding in the Indian Premier League to prioritize playing international cricket in what he described as the “back end” of his career.

Stokes sat out the lucrative IPL this year to ease his workload following knee problems and was a notable absentee in the auction for the 2025 edition.

Stokes, one of cricket's biggest stars, could have commanded a huge fee, given he signed a contract worth $2 million with Chennai Super Kings for last season. His priorities lie elsewhere, though.

“I obviously want to play as long as I possibly can," Stokes told the BBC the day before England begins its test series against New Zealand. "Looking after my body and looking after myself as much as I can is key to that — prioritizing games and when I do play.

"It’s about looking at what I’ve got ahead and making the decision that I think is right for me to be able to prolong my career as long as possible. I want to be wearing this England shirt for as long as I can.”

England is set to hand out a seventh test debut of the year, with Jacob Bethell coming into the team for the first test in Christchurch at No. 3 — a role he has never previously performed in first-class cricket. That's because wicketkeeper Jordan Cox sustained a broken thumb in the nets during a warmup week in Queenstown and was ruled out of the match.

It would have been a test debut for Cox, who was himself only filling in for Jamie Smith, who is on paternity leave.

“It’s a horrible thing to go through an injury and particularly when you’re on the verge of making your test debut,” Stokes said of Cox.

“But as gutted as I am, as gutted as the rest of the team are, you understand that Jordan is even more gutted. You put an arm round him, check in on how he’s going, but there’s not too much you can really say because it is absolutely gutting for the lad and a real shame.”

New Zealand is coming off a historic 3-0 series win in India, while England has just lost a series 2-1 in Pakistan.