Every word from Ben Stokes’ retirement explanation.
England captain revealed thinking behind decision in lengthy interview with Sky Sports’ Ian Ward and former team-mate Stuart Broad.
Ben Stokes announced his retirement from international cricket midway through day four of England’s third Test decider against New Zealand.
The news left the Trent Bridge crowd – and English cricket’s wider fanbase – stunned, with a statement being published by the England and Wales Cricket Board 15 minutes before the tea break.
Afterwards, Stokes revealed his reasons for the sudden announcement in an interview with Sky Sports presenter Ian Ward and former team-mate-turned-pundit Stuart Broad, with Monday now due to be the final day of his 13-year international career. Here is every word he had to say.
On the decision and his emotions...
“It’s been an interesting four-five weeks, and six months generally. Emotions when this day comes to everyone there’s relief, happiness, excitement, sadness everything you go through. All of those words I use there.
“It’s been really tough. I am sure a lot of, not necessarily players but captains can understand this. Someone I’ve spoken to quite a lot about this kind of stuff is Joe [Root] about this, he gets it, he understands it. It’s the best thing I’ve ever been asked to do, to captain this team and my country. I never begrudge any moment I’ve captained this team – it’s been the greatest honour you can put on your shoulders as a player
“There’s another side to it that only those people close can understand and see – my family, and particularly wife, they see what you go through emotionally. As good as it is, it can drain you and affect you in negative ways. Overall, it’s been four or five years, and I’ve loved every moment of it – but some times, some moments have been harder than others.”
On Lord’s and how it made him feel...
“One of those to be honest, the whole Lord’s Test for me was something that I guess, it brought back some kind of negative feelings about where I was in my career. I worked so hard after getting back home [from the Ashes] and to try make things right. I put so much time and effort into it, I maybe possibly burnt out. Then the week at Lord’s was a very interesting and strange feeling to go into that game. Sometimes for me if I have too much time it’s not best for me.
“I gave myself enough time, spoke to people about it, I tried, I gave every opportunity to potentially conclude that, I don’t know, see if it was a blip or something wasn’t quite right. [But] everyone says about the day [they resign the captaincy] what’s it like, they say it hits you in the face. And I thought a few weeks ago it did. I was putting pads on yesterday getting ready to go out there and that was the final nail in the coffin.”
On the Lord’s Test and playing for Durham after the nightclub incident...
“The build up things were like that during that week for me. Then say to my mate Joe in the dressing room, then other scenario that added more to everything – nothing is ever easy or simple with me. One of the good things about me and my career is that we can have a laugh about it. It was as unfortunate a situation to be involved in the past two-and-a-half weeks. I love cricket, and being back at Durham I found a new lease of life with my connection towards cricket and I couldn’t get that feeling back here this week as much as I was trying.
“I have been through some rocky times, personally with having to push myself though to or do something because it’s the right thing to do. It might sound selfish, but this is the best thing for me right now and I hope it is the best thing for the team as well. [It is the best thing for me] when it comes down to what will allow me to still love this game that I’ve played since I was a kid. I am very excited about the next part, what I get to do going back to play for my boyhood club Durham really. I am comparing this week to last right now and buzzing because of it. There have been moments this week that have been really tough that just adds to everything and makes it in the back of your mind that you’re making the right decision.”
On having no fight left in him...
“There have been good times, [some] pretty bad times. Over the past five-six weeks it was something else I had to try and overcome and I’ve felt like I’ve been pretty good at doing that in my career, overcoming on-field disappointment, off-field disappointment. And then the emotional side of it since Australia, and I told my wife I don’t think I have any more fight in me. It hit me in the face. You go through that whole process and speak to people who are close to you and start to let more and more out, and the more I spoke to my wife about it...it’s brutal what we do – physically and mentally and stuff away from it, all the the hard work [to be able to play for England]. Even that is getting tiring now, I am 35 and I feel I have to do so much physical work to keep myself doing what I do out there, [I’ve been thinking] ‘do I have that in me do I have that fight in me to keep doing that’ because I know what it takes to go out there and play for your country. So many things have led me to know that this is the right decision – there’s the emotional side, the physical side and the mental side.”
On the announcement...
“I spoke to the team this morning. I spoke to Rooty and Brooky [Harry Brook] last night. I had a big job still to do out there today. The team we have up there, the comms and even Baz [Brendon McCullum], I asked the comms team, working Michael Lumb and with Neil Fairbrother who looks after me, you guys come up with a plan and whatever you think it best I’m fine with so I can concentrate on going out in the middle with the team. And we had a little plan that if it gets to seven or eight down it would be nice to do the message. It was always going to be a tactical decision for me to open the batting on that pitch because of the wicket and what we felt we needed to do against the new ball. So everything considered I was like ‘right, you do what you feel is best’, and everyone just had a laugh when we came off because as soon as it got announced everyone was like ‘what is going on?’ Then of course I had to take a wicket. Then when I walked off Baz was like ‘...we should have announced it an hour earlier!’. He just said ‘it’s typical of you that!’ Even the other boys were like ‘wow!’ It was absolutely electric. Yep, so give credit to the comms team for making that play out the way it did.” DT.
