CRICKET
Too much cricket? Stokes retires from ODIs
England all-rounder Ben Stokes has announced his retirement from ODIs.
Stokes said that the ODI against South Africa on Tuesday at Durham will be his last.
The biggest highlight of the 31-year-old England Test captain’s ODI career was the Player-of-the-Match performance in the 2019 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup final against New Zealand at Lord’s.
The game at Durham, his home ground will be his 105th ODI.
Since making his ODI debut against Ireland in 2011, Stokes has scored 2919 runs, including three centuries, and taken 74 wickets.
Henceforth, he will focus on T20s alongside his responsibilities as Test captain.
“This has been an incredibly tough decision to make,” Stokes said.
“I have loved every minute of playing with my mates for England. Hard as this decision was to come to, it’s not as hard as dealing with the fact I can’t give my teammates 100% of myself in this format any more.”
“The England shirt deserves nothing less from anyone who wears it.”
“Three formats are just unsustainable for me now. 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 Jos and the rest of the team their all.”
“It’s time for someone else to progress as a cricketer and make incredible memories like I have over the past 11 years,” said Stokes in an official statement.
“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 also captained the ODI side during last summer’s 3-0 series victory against Pakistan.