Ben Stokes has shocked the cricketing world by announcing his retirement from the One Day Internationals.
He will play his final ODI tomorrow against South Africa at his home ground in Durham in what will be his 105th and final game.
The 31-year-old announced his decision in a statement issued by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and cited the rigors of playing all three formats as the chief reason for his early retirement.
“Three formats are just unsustainable for me now,” said Stokes, who will continue to captain England’s red-ball side and continue to play T20 cricket.
“Not only do I feel that my body is letting me down because of the schedule and what is expected of us, but I also feel that I am taking the place of another player who can give (captain) Jos (Buttler) and the rest of the team their all.”
“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,” he said.
Stokes made his made ODI debut against Ireland in Dublin in 2011 and has gone on to score 2919 runs, including three hundreds, at an average of 39.44 with a 95-plus strike rate as well as claim 74 wickets.
His most famous stint in the ODI shirt came when he led England to a World Cup final win over New Zealand in 2019 and was declared player-of-the-match for his contribution.
Ben Stokes follows his captain from that team, Eoin Morgan, into retirement who bid adieu to the game just weeks ago.
