Ben Stokes announces retirement from Tests, shocks cricket world

England captain Ben Stokes announced on Sunday that he will retire from international cricket after the ongoing third Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge, bringing an end to a career that has lasted 15 years.The announcement came while Stokes was in the middle of a bowling spell. England Cricket released a statement confirming that the 35-year-old would step away from international cricket after the conclusion of the Test.Stokes had missed England's second Test after being involved in an incident at a London nightclub. Before returning to lead the side in Nottingham, he had only referred to captaining the team "this week."He informed his England teammates of his decision before the start of the fourth day of the deciding Test against New Zealand.Speaking in the dressing room, an emotional Stokes said: "The reasons can wait, why, 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."The only that I ask, please, is can everyone do the same.""We've got a lot of hard work to do and the only thing I want is to be able to walk off that field, regardless of the result, knowing that I've had this group give everything for the last two days."That's the only thing I want, for everyone to give it not only for me, selfishly, but also for this team."I've got the emotional side out of it. Now it's time to go to work. Please, everyone else come with me."For Stokes, the decision brings to a close a 15-year international career that included some of England's most memorable cricket moments.In the summer of 2019, he played one of the defining innings of his career, scoring 84 as England won the ODI World Cup for the first time by defeating New Zealand in a final widely regarded as one of the greatest matches in cricket history.Just six weeks later, Stokes produced another innings that became part of Ashes folklore. His unbeaten 135 at Headingley guided England to a remarkable one-wicket win over Australia, keeping the series alive almost single-handedly.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.