England’s magical all-rounder Ben Stokes declared his shock retirement from one-day cricket on Monday referring to the “unsustainable” rigour of playing all three formats of the game.
A statement released by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said Tuesday’s match against South Africa at his home ground in Durham will be Stokes’ 105th and final one-day international. .
“Three formats are unstable for me now,” said Stokes, who will be pursuing to play Twenty20 Internationals now.
“Not only do I feel like my body is letting me down because of the schedule and the expectations on us, but I also feel like I’m replacing another player who (captain) Jos (Buttler) and everyone else. Can give them all. team.”
Stokes, who took over as Test captain in April, was man of the match as England beat New Zealand in the final to win their first 50-over World Cup in 2019 at Lord’s.
One of the most exciting players of his time, Stokes has fight a series of trauma in current times and took a break from the game recent year to focus on his mental health.
He said that, “I will give everything I have to Test cricket, and now, with this decision, I feel I can also give my total commitment to the T20 format”.
Stokes made his ODI debut against Ireland in Dublin in 2011.
He had played 104 One Day Internationals, scored 2919 runs at an average of 39.44 including three centuries with a strike rate of over 95.
He took 74 wickets with the ball and is one of the fastest fielders in the team.
After former captain Eoin Morgan, Stokes is the second player from England’s 2019 World Cup-winning team to retire from ODIs.
Rob Key, managing director of England men’s cricket, praised Stokes’ “incredible international career” in the 50-over format.
Key said that, “I know this must have been a tough decision, but I completely understand why he has reached this conclusion”.
“It’s a typically selfless decision that will benefit England in the long run”
Interim ECB chief executive Clare Connor declared Stokes a “superstar in every format”.
She said that,”Ben is not only one of the best players in the world but also an inspiring personality, so our ODI team will miss him”.
“But after taking over the Test captaincy and with today’s busy cricket calendar, we fully understand and respect his decision.”