'Burnt Out' Ben Stokes Leaves England Facing Tricky Questions

Burnt Out Ben Stokes Leaves England Facing Tricky Questions (Image Source: AFP)

What happens next? That is the awkward question facing English cricket after Ben Stokes announced his retirement from international duty in the middle of a Test match.

Stokes explained on Sunday that he felt "burnt out" after four years as England's Test captain following an extraordinary day of drama in the third match of the series against New Zealand at Trent Bridge.

Replacing him in the England set-up, both as captain or as a match-winning all-rounder, is going to be all but impossible.

The announcement of the impending end of Stokes' England career came as the 35-year-old was involved in a marathon bowling spell, with the series on the line.

It was the start of a scarcely credible sequence of events.

The crowd in Nottingham gave Stokes a standing ovation before the skipper took a wicket with his next delivery -- a stark example of his ability to impact a game by sheer force of will as well as skill.

Despite his heroics, the visitors were able to set England a stiff victory target of 373 after Daryl Mitchell's gutsy century.

Stokes later promoted himself to open England's innings even though he is normally a middle-order batsman.

He blazed his way to a tempestuous 30 off 20 balls, including two sixes, before he holed out -- showing little of the calculated risk-taking that underpinned some of his greatest innings.

Stokes, who walked off to more applause, had played his last on-field role in an international career spanning 15 years.

At stumps England had slumped to 103-4, facing defeat and a 2-1 series loss on Monday.

The timing of the captain's announcement and his decision to promote himself to the top of the order, left him open to accusations of self-indulgence.

- 'Draining' -

But if the all-rounder has had enough, perhaps it is no surprise.

England suffered a chastening 4-1 Ashes loss in Australia in a series that ended in January and Stokes needed major facial surgery after being hit by a ball the following month.

Then came a written warning following a disciplinary incident at a London nightclub after England's win in the first Test against New Zealand, which led to his omission from the second match of the series.

"I'll never begrudge any moment where I've walked this team out," Stokes told Sky Sports after stumps. "It's simply the greatest honour you could ever put on your shoulders as a player."

But he added: "As good as it is, there are bits where it does get to you, it does drain you, it does affect you in a negative way."

Reflecting on England's victory in the first Test at Lord's, he said: "I put so much time and effort into it I maybe, potentially burnt myself out.

"Everyone I spoke to about the day it (retirement) happens, they just say it kicks you straight in the face. And I thought a few weeks ago that it did.

"As I was putting my pads on (on Saturday) getting ready to go out there, that was the last nail in the coffin."

Stokes, whose international career was interrupted by a nightclub incident in 2017 that ended with his acquittal on a charge of affray, intends to play on with his county side Durham.

"Being back at Durham, I found not a reconnection but a new lease of life in my affection towards cricket," he explained. "And then I just couldn't get that same feeling back here this week (at Trent Bridge), as much as I was trying."

England looked a badly imbalanced team in the second Test at the Oval, with his predecessor as England captain Joe Root leading the side to a heavy defeat.

Harry Brook is the official vice-captain but was left in the ranks after his altercation with a nightclub bouncer in New Zealand ahead of the Ashes -- an incident that led to the imposition of the curfew Stokes breached in London.

Brook on Sunday tried to follow his skipper's lead with the attacking Bazball batting that has been a hallmark of England's style since Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum teamed up in 2022.

He flayed his first ball for six and holed out off his ninth, prompting former England skipper Michael Atherton to write in The Times: "He is not the Test captain in waiting."

But then, who is?