LONDON – English all-rounder Ben Stokes has announced to take an indefinite break from all cricket to prioritize his mental wellbeing and continue his recovery from an injury to his left index finger, ECB said Friday.
A statement from the national cricket body said “England and Wales Cricket Board can confirm that Ben Stokes will take an indefinite break from all cricket with immediate effect.”
ECB also announced to fully support his decision and it would “continue to help him during this period away from the game”.
BREAKING: England's star all-rounder Ben Stokes has taken an indefinite break from all cricket with immediate effect. pic.twitter.com/lcQSAMYUGt
— ICC (@ICC) July 30, 2021
The Managing Director of England Men’s Cricket Ashley Giles said the “all-rounder has shown tremendous courage to open up about his feelings and wellbeing”.
He further added that “Our primary focus has always been and will continue to be the mental health and welfare of all of our people and the demands on our athletes to prepare and play elite sport are relentless in a typical environment, but the ongoing pandemic has acutely compounded this”.
“Spending significant amounts of time away from family, with minimal freedoms, is extremely challenging. The cumulative effect of operating almost continuously in these environments over the last 16 months has had a major impact on everyone’s wellbeing. Ben will be given as long as he needs, and we look forward to seeing him playing cricket for England in the future”, he further mentioned.
The 30-year-old has withdrawn from the English squad for next week’s series against India and will be replaced by right-arm pacer Craig Overton.
Earlier this month, Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka opened up about her mental health struggles and her decision to drop out of the French Open saying “it’s O.K. to not be O.K.”
