Two former England cricket stars, Ben Stokes and Ian Botham, have been involved in a war of words since the Ashes series last year. The entire issue began when the English side played an intra-squad game instead of a warm-up match against a local side during the Australian tour. Botham wasn’t too happy with the move and called out the practice.
Stokes, speaking to the media, used the word ‘Has-been’ and said that the team wasn’t going to follow age-old traditions. The 35-year-old later tried to make amends with an apology, but that left a bitter taste in the 70-year-old legendary cricketer’s mouth.
The 1981 Ashes hero had appeared during the first India and England ODI game at Edgbaston. “As we know, Michael Vaughan & I. We don’t know what we’re talking about. A couple of old has -beens. Ben, if you’re listening, congratulations, you’ve joined the club. You’re now a has-been.”
It didn’t take the former Chennai Super Kings star to fire back. “The quote ‘it’s better to be a has-been than never been’ originates from Lord Ian Botham.” The tweet had gained close to 800,000 views and had over 100 comments.
The quote “It’s better to be a has-been than a never-been” originates from Lord Ian Botham.
— Ben Stokes (@benstokes38) July 15, 2026
Former England skipper gears up for cricketing return
Stokes is set to play ODI cricket for Durham weeks after he retires from international cricket. BBC quoted the player as saying, “I’m very excited about the next part of what I get to do. I am going back to playing for my boyhood club, Durham. I’m comparing this week to that week. Right now, I am buzzing.
“But there have been moments this week that have been really tough, and it just adds to everything, and it makes it clear that I’ve made the right decision.”
Comments are closed.