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Ben Stokes did not want to play for England following 2017 arrest


image-l75g2kqlBen Stokes in action against India (PC: twitter)

Ben Stokes recently admitted that there was a time when he had decided to not play for England anymore. The cricketer made the sensational revelations on the new Amazon Prime documentary, “Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes”.


Stokes opens up about 2017 street brawl arrest and aftermath

The 31-year-old was appointed as England’s Test captain earlier this year, after batting maverick Joe Root tendered his resignation from his role. Notably, Stokes’ glittering international career could have been ended in 2017 itself, if it was not for the cricketers’ agent Neil Fairbrother.

In 2017, the all-rounder was involved in a street brawl outside a Bristol-based nightclub. He was severely penalised for the incident as was dropped from the English squad for the 2017-18 Ashes in Australia. He also sustained a hand injury during the altercation.

Moreover, Stokes was arrested and also put to trial at the Bristol Magistrates' Court and had faced a ban of eight matches by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

In the latest documentary on Prime, the 2019 World Cup-winner stated that he lost his desire to play for England again. He said:

“I don’t want to play for England anymore.”

His agent Neil Fairbrother persuaded the cricketer during subsequent showdown talks at the motorway service station. He recalled the events from his perspective, saying:

“He lost the desire and it just wasn’t Ben. We talked about who you play for and why you play. I had to get over to him that he was playing cricket for himself, his family, his team-mates. That was what he played for. That is why he was so good and that is what we had to get back to.”

Notably, Stokes now leads England’s Test side and has taken a centre-stage in several of his country’s most iconic moments of the past few years. In 2019, he helped England lift their first-ever ODI World Cup and a few months later, saved an Ashes humiliation at home with a scintillating 135* at Leeds.


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