Ben Stokes announces his shock retirement from international cricket

Stokes issued a statement shortly before tea on day four of the decisive third Test against New Zealand, having informed his team-mates in the dressing room at Trent Bridge before the start of play.

As the news broke, Stokes was in the middle of a mammoth bowling spell, with news filtering out into a stunned crowd as he stood at the top of his mark to start an 11th over.

The 35-year-old received a spontaneous standing ovation from all four corners of the crowd and then produced a quite remarkable piece of theatre – having Zak Foulkes caught at slip with his next ball.

The fans roared in delight as the rest of the team mobbed him in a moment that will live long in English cricket folklore.

The shocking development comes in the immediate aftermath of the disciplinary incident that unfolded earlier this month, involving Stokes and Gus Atkinson in a London nightclub.

He was stood down from the second Test at the Kia Oval while the England and Wales Cricket Board conducted an investigation into the episode. He was later handed a written conduct warning but escaped any further censure and immediately returned to lead the side in Nottingham.

Speaking for the first time since the saga began on Wednesday, he appeared to cast doubt over his long-term future, repeatedly focusing on the importance of the five days ahead. Invited to clarify that he was not back in the side for one match only, he refused to do so.

Informing his team that his long and storied England career was coming to an end in the next 48 hours, Stokes said in a clip shared by the ECB: “There’s something that I know is going to happen over the next two days, which is my last two days as your captain and my last two days representing England.

“Reasons can wait but I’ve had many trips to the well before for this team, for you blokes, for people beforehand and I’ve got one more trip to do.

“And the only thing that I ask, please, is can everyone please just do the same? We’ve done a lot of hard work still to do, and the only thing that I want is to be able to walk off the end of that field regardless of the result, knowing that I’ve had this group of men and one lady (fielding coach Sarah Taylor) give everything for the last two days.

“The only thing I want is just for everyone to give it not only for me, selfishly, but also for this team and everything else we’ve got going forward for you blokes.

“Let’s just go out there and f***ing give absolutely everything for another two days because that’s my only intention and that’s where all my energy is right now.

“(I’ve) got the emotional side out of it but now it’s time to go to work and everyone else, please just come with me.”

Former team-mate Stuart Broad said on commentary for Sky Sports: “(He is) a talisman of English cricket. He will be remembered wearing that Three Lions with a crown on top very proudly.

“A complete match-winner, someone that won’t look at the numbers, look at the moments of his career.

“Someone that’s always there in the big moments of games, giving absolutely everything.”

After Stokes fittingly went on to take a wicket with his first ball after the news was made public, Broad added: “What a magical moment. Who writes his scripts?”

England’s Ashes 2005-winning captain Michael Vaughan said on the BBC’s Test Match Special: “That was an immediate reminder of what England are going to miss.

“That’s exactly why he is a great, and incredible player.

“I am still completely stunned. I just didn’t see it coming, but I did see the wicket coming because he has done that throughout his entire career. Whenever England need something, he has always delivered.”

England and Wales Cricket Board chair Richard Thompson was also full of praise for the two-time World Cup winner.

Thompson said: “Ben Stokes leaves the international game as one of England’s greatest ever cricketers and one of the defining figures of his generation.

“His performances under pressure, his relentless competitiveness and his ability to produce the extraordinary when it matters most have given me and millions of other fans memories that will endure forever.

“Whether inspiring victory in the biggest moments – not least driving England to World Cup wins in 2019 and 2022 and his heroic Ashes innings at Headingley – or leading the Test team with courage and conviction, Ben has been a talismanic figure in English cricket.

“Beyond his remarkable achievements on the field, his performances have inspired many youngsters to embrace cricket with positivity and belief. We are losing a batsman, a bowler, a captain and a talisman.”