England captain Ben Stokes stunned the world of cricket on Sunday by announcing his impending retirement from the international game in the middle of a test match he was playing against New Zealand, later saying he’d run out of fight after 15 years with the national team.
Read more Cassidy, fresh off a blowup with Trump, blasts RFK Jr.’s policies
News of the imminent end of Stokes’ era-defining time in an England shirt came in a statement released by the team 15 minutes before the tea interval on Day 4 of the third and deciding test at Trent Bridge.
With the first ball he bowled after the announcement went public, the 35-year-old Stokes took a wicket in what could prove to be a symbolic moment. That’s because the catch was taken by Harry Brook — possibly England’s next test captain.
Stokes then smashed 30 off 20 balls after deciding to open the batting in what was seemingly his final test innings. He was given a standing ovation as he walked off the field saluting the crowd, despite England slipping toward a series defeat in Nottingham.
Afterward, Stokes said he might have “burnt myself out” attempting to put English cricket on a stable footing after the team’s humiliating 4-1 defeat to Australia in the Ashes tour last winter.
“This decision is genuinely the best thing for me right now,” he said. “I hope it’s the best thing for the team going forward but I also hope it’s what will allow me to keep loving this game that has given me so much.”
It was quite the way to bow out — and summed up Stokes’ international career as a man who delivered in the big moments and did things other players couldn’t or wouldn’t dare do.
Like in 2019 when he starred for England in its wild win over New Zealand — the country of his birth — in the 50-over World Cup final at Lord’s, hitting 84 before victory was clinched in a Super Over.
Like when he scored the winning runs as England clinched the T20 World Cup in Melbourne in 2022 — the same year he became test captain.
Or like when he made his most memorable knock in test cricket, an unbeaten 135 as England chased down 359 to beat Australia in an Ashes match at Headingley in 2019.
“I’ve had many trips to the well before for this team,” Stokes said when dropping news of his retirement to teammates in the England dressing room ahead of Sunday’s play, as shown in a video released by England on social media. “And I’ve got one more trip to do.”
The final day of his international career will be on Monday, though he’ll likely spend it watching from the balcony. England reached stumps on 103-4, chasing an unlikely 373 to win.
He didn’t say it publicly when undertaking some media interviews after Sunday’s play, but Stokes’ decision to retire from international cricket might have something to do with his recent involvement in an off-field saga that saw him make front-page news by being dropped by England for the second test against New Zealand. That came amid an investigation into an incident that took place on a night out with teammate Gus Atkinson following the first test at Lord’s.
The two players were in a London nightclub when an England team security official was reportedly struck by a rugby player from English club Saracens.
The England and Wales Cricket Board dropped Stokes and Atkinson, and later said they had “breached specific contractual obligations.” The sport’s independent oversight panel — the Cricket Regulator body — said after its investigation that there was “insufficient evidence to establish that any regulatory breach occurred.”
Read more Lindsey Vonn has a special understanding of Serena Williams’ comeback as a fellow 40-something
Stokes was recalled for the third test but England coach Brendon McCullum and team director Rob Key didn’t publicly support their captain during the investigation, which was described as disappointing and frustrating by Stokes.
Speaking to the BBC, Stokes said he felt “flat” and “aggy” even ahead of that Lord’s test and hadn’t enjoyed the responsibility of resuming his England captaincy after the Ashes.
Stokes finishes his test career with 7,273 runs and 252 wickets in 122 matches. He is only the second allrounder to score more than 7,000 test runs and take more than 250 wickets, after Jacques Kallis (13,289 runs and 292 wickets).
He also played in 114 ODIs and 43 T20s.
ECB chairman Richard Thompson said Stokes is “one of England’s greatest ever cricketers and one of the defining figures of his generation.”
“His performances under pressure, his relentless competitiveness and his ability to produce the extraordinary when it matters most have given me and millions of other fans memories that will endure forever,” Thompson said. “We are losing a batsman, a bowler, a captain and a talisman.”
A controversial figure, too.
In 2018, Stokes was found not guilty of affray following a late-night street brawl the previous year in Bristol, southwest England, that took place after a victory over the West Indies in an international match.
In the aftermath of his arrest, a newspaper website published footage of the fight, which left two men unconscious. Stokes, who had been drinking heavily, said during the trial that he stepped in to defend two gay men who were being verbally abused.
Stokes lost his England vice-captaincy and a place on an Ashes tour, but was reinstated after the not-guilty verdict.
In 2021, Stokes took a break from cricket to focus on his mental health but returned inside a year and was named as test captain in 2022, partnering with McCullum for what was later termed the “Bazball” era of aggressive, fearless cricket.
Brook, the captain of England’s white-ball teams, also is the test vice-captain, so should be next in line to lead the side — starting with a series against Pakistan in August.
However, Brook has been involved in controversy himself after getting in an altercation with a nightclub bouncer in Wellington, New Zealand, before the recent Ashes tour.
Brook was overlooked as captain for the second test after Stokes was dropped, with Joe Root — the previous skipper — taking charge. Root is unlikely to want the role again, though.
There’s also no obvious replacement for Stokes in the allrounder role, so his departure will leave a huge hole in the team.
Read more Inside the World Cup knockout stage bracket: Some teams have an easier path than others
___
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
