Ben Stokes announced his retirement from international cricket on Sunday. The announcement came on day four of the third Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge. He will step away after the match ends.
Stokes made the announcement while he was bowling. He informed his teammates before the start of the fourth day. He gave an emotional speech in the dressing room. He asked his teammates to give everything for the final two days of the match.
The decision brings an end to a 15-year international career. Stokes is 35 years old.
Stokes missed England’s second Test after an incident at a London nightclub. Before returning for the third Test, he had only referred to captaining the team “this week.”
Stokes was part of several memorable moments in English cricket. In 2019, he scored 84 as England won the ODI World Cup. Six weeks later, he scored an unbeaten 135 at Headingley. The innings helped England beat Australia in an Ashes Test.
England still need 270 runs to win the current match against New Zealand.
Top 5 Ben Stokes Moments in International Cricket
1. The 2019 World Cup Final
On July 14, 2019, Ben Stokes played the greatest ODI innings of his career. It happened on the biggest stage of all. The World Cup final at Lord’s was against New Zealand. He played a masterful knock. He remained unbeaten on 84 runs from 98 balls.
England needed 15 runs from the final over. Stokes hit a six. Then came a freak deflection. The ball went off his bat for four overthrows. He forced the match into a Super Over. He scored a crucial 8 runs from 3 balls. England won their first-ever World Cup. Stokes was named Player of the Match.
2. The 2019 Headingley Ashes
Just two months after his World Cup heroics, Stokes pulled off another miracle. It is considered the greatest Test innings ever played by an Englishman. It happened in the third Ashes Test at Headingley. England were down and out. They needed 73 runs to win. Only one wicket remained in their innings.
Stokes, who had been dropped twice, produced a knock of sheer genius, finishing 135 not out from 219 balls. He scored all but one of the runs in a stunning 76-run partnership with last man Jack Leach to secure a famous one-wicket victory, keeping the Ashes alive.
3. The 2022 T20 World Cup Final
For years, Stokes was haunted by the 2016 T20 World Cup final. He was hit for four consecutive sixes in the final over. In 2022, he wrote a completely different ending.
Chasing a modest target of 138 against Pakistan in the final at the MCG, England stumbled to 84/4. Stokes remained ice-cool throughout. He anchored the chase with an unbeaten 52 runs from 49 balls. He guided England to their second T20 World Cup title. The win exorcised the demons of 2016. He cemented his reputation as the ultimate “clutch” player.
4. The 2016 Cape Town Knock
Before he was a captain or a World Cup winner, Stokes announced himself as a destructive force of nature in Test cricket. In January 2016, during the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town, he walked to the crease with England in trouble and proceeded to launch one of the most fearless assaults ever seen.
He smashed an astonishing 258 runs from just 198 balls, including 30 fours and 11 sixes. It remains his highest Test score and also the fastest double centuries in the history of the game.
5. The 2023 Lord’s Ashes
Four years after his Headingley miracle, Stokes produced another Ashes innings for the ages. This time it was at Lord’s. But it ended in heartbreak. England were chasing an impossible target. They needed 371 runs against a rampant Australia.
Stokes played a staggering knock of 155 runs. He hit a record-breaking nine sixes. That is the most in any Ashes innings. He single-handedly threatened to pull off one of the greatest run-chases in Test history. Ultimately, he was dismissed. England fell 43 runs short. Despite the loss, it remains a testament to his fighting spirit and brilliance.
FAQs
Q. When did Ben Stokes announce his retirement?
A. Stokes announced his retirement on day four of the third Test against New Zealand.
Q. What did Ben Stokes tell his teammates before retiring?
A. Stokes informed them before the start of day four and gave an emotional dressing-room speech.
Q. What was Ben Stokes’ biggest moment in ODI cricket?
A. His biggest ODI moment came in the 2019 World Cup final. He scored an unbeaten 84, as England won their first World Cup.
Q. What was Ben Stokes’ highest score in Test cricket?
A. His highest Test score was 258 against South Africa in Cape Town in 2016.
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