Cricket has witnessed a historic international career that ended today with the incredible Ben Stokes who made the game unforgettable through his match-winning performances, heroics and outstanding all-round abilities. Stokes was widely acknowledged as one of the best all-rounders in cricket history, and played some of the greatest moments in all forms of the game.
His outstanding experience was when he played the final match of the ICC Men’s World Cup 2019 against New Zealand. Targeting an ambitious target, Stokes did not allow a single run in to ensure a dramatic last-over tie before World Cup fingerprint came into play as England won their first ODI World Cup trophy. His brilliant innings won the race for him to get the Player of the Match status.
It was only a few weeks later that Stokes delivered one of his best Test performances ever. Almost certain to lose the third Ashes Test of the series at Headingley, he rallied back to hit an unbeaten 135 to scrap together a one-wicket win in a match of which he will be the first to boast: “Imagine we were destined to lose our third test…”
But the case with Ben Stokes is even more remarkable when he is considered one of just three players (Sir Garry Sobers and Jacques Kallis, among them) who have amassed over 200 wickets while contributing more than 7,000 runs.
He also performed well on the largest stage in 2022, hitting the big tent in his first final in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final match against Pakistan and scoring unbeaten 52 in the game to lift his second ICC Men’s T20 World Cup trophy.
Another milestone was achieved in 2016, when Stokes hit the fastest Test double century then and hit 258 with South Africa in Cape Town as No. 6 batter. His incredible career has ensured he will be remembered as one of the great players in the game of cricket.