After Tuesday’s match against South Africa, Ben Stokes, one of the most formidable and renowned all-rounders in cricket, will call it quits in the ODI format after 11 years of international play. Due to injuries and fitness, the player has chosen to leave the format. On his social media accounst, the player declared his retirement.
Ben Stokes, “As hard as a decision as this was to come, it’s not as hard dealing with the fact that I can’t give my teammates 100% of myself in this format anymore. The England shirt deserves nothing less from anyone who wears it.”
The 31-year-old, who recently assumed leadership of England’s Test team, said that playing all three formats of the game was “unsustainable” for him given his physique and his busy schedule and that he will now be concentrating his emphasis on Tests and T20s
“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.”
Key, who chose Stokes to lead the team in tests, described the cricketer’s choice to leave ODIs as “typically selfless.”