Cricket
Ben Stokes played 104 ODIs for England, scoring 2919 runs with three centuries and 21 half-centuries, and taking 74 wickets.
Updated : Jul 18, 2022, 08:07 PM IST | Edited by : Ashish Kapoor
Star England all-rounder and 2019 World Cup final hero Ben Stokes on Monday made a surprise announcement to retire from ODI cricket, saying playing three formats has become "unsustainable" for him. The 31-year-old Stokes will play his last ODI against South Africa at his home ground in Durham on Tuesday.
Stokes has so far played 104 ODIs for England, scoring 2,919 runs at an average of 39.44. The all-rounder had starred in the final of 2019 World Cup as he played an unbeaten knock of 84 against New Zealand in the summit clash. Stokes was adjudged as Player of the Match.
Stokes cited the mental and physical strain of playing in all three formats of the game as the reason for his retirement from ODI cricket despite there being an ODI World Cup coming in 2023 which will be played in India.
The Twitterverse was in shock as Ben Stokes’ announcement took them by surprise. Here are some tweets:
It is really shocking decision from @benstokes38.Best of Luck for future journey. #Retirement #BenStokes https://t.co/FNGaT1dHI8
— Sagar Srivastava (@iamSaagar) July 18, 2022
#BenStokes retires from ODI criket.
— Sayali Mohite (@SayaliMohite23) July 18, 2022
Saddest person right now #ViratKohli
Will miss you ben stokes as you were the only criketer whose name was taken everyday by indians#INDvENG #BenStokes #ViratKohli#RohitSharma #RohitSharma #ENGvIND #England #ODI #Odicriket pic.twitter.com/Zt1zIvErlG
A man with immense talent, who sparked whispers and cheers with each ball! Best wishes to you @benstokes38. Your name will forever be etched in our hearts #BenStokes #HappyRetirement #ODICricket pic.twitter.com/2zmqOUrvZO
— Kanishk Seth (@im_kanishk44) July 18, 2022
#BenStokes one of the greatest to have played the ODI format pic.twitter.com/G6oxPhnZIU
— Prithviraj (@Prithvi1026) July 18, 2022
Game recognize game #ViratKohli #BenStokes #ENGvsIND #Cricket #ODIs pic.twitter.com/CWgpoxqMBB
— (@Umangdhiman1027) July 18, 2022
The biggest achievement of Ben Stokes’ ODI career remains the final of the 2019 World Cup between England and New Zealand at the Lord’s. Stokes was named the Player of the Final for his 84* as his knock helped England tie the match and send it into the super over.
READ: England's red ball skipper Ben Stokes announces shock retirement from ODI format
In an official statement, Ben Stokes said that he can’t give his 100% to England in ODIs. He added that making the decision to retire from ODIs was very tough for him.