Ben Stokes Retirement: England captain and star all-rounder Ben Stokes has announced his retirement from international cricket. Stokes will end his 15-year long international career after the third Test against New Zealand being played at Trent Bridge. The England Cricket Board (ECB) made its official announcement on Sunday, June 28. This announcement was made during the fourth day of play of the third Test, which surprised the cricket world. 35 year old Stokes is counted among the most successful all-rounders of England cricket.
The most memorable moment of his career was the 2019 ODI World Cup final, when he made England the world champion for the first time by playing an unbeaten match-winning inning of 84 runs against New Zealand. After this, he was also an important part of England’s T20 World Cup winning team in 2022.
Suddenly decided to retire after nightclub controversy
Recently, after the investigation of an incident that took place in a London nightclub, speculations regarding the future of Ben Stokes had intensified. Earlier this month, he was dropped from the second Test against New Zealand due to indiscipline, after which many questions started being raised about his career. However, Stokes returned as captain in the series-deciding third Test. But before the fourth day of the match being played at Trent Bridge, he informed his teammates in the dressing room of the England team about his decision to retire from international cricket. England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has shared the video of this emotional moment of Stokes on its social media handle.
ECB President praised Ben Stokes
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Chairman Richard Thompson praised Ben Stokes after his decision to retire. Thompson said that βStokes is one of the greatest players in the history of English cricket and has inspired cricketers of his generation.β He further said, “Stokes stepped forward and took responsibility for the team in every challenging situation. He never gave up and took the team out of difficult situations. There have been many such memorable moments in Stokes’ career, which millions of cricket lovers around the world will never forget.”
Ben Stokes’ brilliant cricket career
Ben Stokes started his international career in the year 2011 with white ball format. After this, in December 2013, he made his Test debut during the Ashes series in Adelaide. Stokes was given the captaincy of England’s Test team in the year 2022 itself. Under his leadership, the team adopted an aggressive ‘baseball’ style and recorded many memorable victories in Test cricket.
Stokes played 121 Tests, 114 ODIs and 43 T20 International matches in his career. In Test cricket, he scored 7228 runs at an average of 34.58 and in bowling also he took 246 wickets. At the same time, in ODI, Stokes scored 3463 runs in 99 innings at an excellent average of 41.22, while taking 74 wickets with the ball. Apart from scoring 585 runs in T20I cricket, he also took 26 wickets. Due to his excellent all-round performance, Stokes remained one of the most reliable players of the England team for a long time.
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