Ben Stokes Announces Retirement From International Cricket After Third Test Vs New Zealand At Trent Bridge

England Test captain Ben Stokes announced his retirement from international cricket effective at the end of the third Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge, with the decision made public on the fourth day 15 minutes before tea while he was bowling.

“England captain Ben Stokes has made the dramatic decision to announce his imminent retirement from international cricket midway through the deciding third test against New Zealand”

Al Jazeera

The announcement followed Stokes telling his teammates in the dressing room on Sunday morning that “It was shock,” and Brendon McCullum, the team’s head coach, “was pretty taken aback,” as England were in the field.

Al Jazeera

Stokes then took a wicket with his first delivery after the news broke, and the BBC said the international career would end on Monday after 15 years, 122 Tests, 114 one-day internationals and 43 T20s.

The Guardian reported Stokes retires with 7,273 runs and 252 wickets in Test cricket, and it said he is only the second player after South Africa’s Jacques Kallis to do the double of 7,000 Test runs and 250 wickets.

AP described the match context as New Zealand closing in on a series-clinching win, with England reaching stumps on 103-4 after 15 overs while still needing 270 runs in a chase of 373 to win.

Stokes said the reaction inside the dressing room was “It was shock,” and he told Sky Sports that “It might sound quite selfish but this decision is genuinely the best thing for me right now.”

The New York Times reported that after the announcement, Stokes had Zak Foulkes caught low down at second slip by Harry Brook as England began the 11th over of a bowling spell.

AP News

Sky Sports quoted Stuart Broad calling Stokes “an absolute talisman of English cricket... someone who's always been there in the big moments, giving absolutely everything,” while Chris Woakes added “Ben Stokes, thank you, from myself and on behalf of every England cricket supporter out there.”

Al Jazeera said the shocking announcement came 15 minutes before the tea break, and it quoted Stokes telling teammates “The reasons can wait [about] why,” as he was given a standing ovation.

AP added that Stokes later said, “I’ve had many trips to the well before for this team,” and “I’ve got one more trip to do,” as England struggled to rally behind his final Test.

The Guardian said after the close of play England’s red-ball side will be out of action for seven weeks, before the first of three games against Pakistan starts in August, giving time for a replacement to be identified.

“Ben Stokes said retiring from international cricket is the "best thing" for him after he revealed England's final Test against New Zealand will be his last”

BBC

The Guardian also noted that Harry Brook captains the white-ball teams and has been Stokes’s vice-captain, while Joe Root was interim captain at the Oval in Stokes’s absence and had played down chances of a full-time comeback.

AP said the match was tied at 1-1 in the series and that New Zealand were the huge favorite to clinch a 2-1 win, with England’s chase described as seemingly forlorn at 373 to win.

BBC reported Stokes denied the retirement was a direct result of the London nightclub incident that made him unavailable for England’s second Test, saying he had been considering ending his career since England’s 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia and had “burned myself out.”

The BBC also said Stokes confirmed he will continue to play domestic cricket, and it quoted him on returning to Durham: “Being back at Durham, when I wasn't playing in the second Test, I found a new lease of life for the game”.