Ben Stokes will be playing his final ODI for England on 19th July after announcing his retirement from the format earlier in the afternoon of 18th. Stokes will retire as one of the finest all-rounders for the Three Lions, with his unbeaten 84* in the 2019 Cricket World Cup amongst his best international innings. With a stellar career behind him, Stokes will look to end his ODI career with a lasting impression, and he wouldn’t have had a better opportunity to do so than on his home ground in Durham. In this piece, we showcase some of the ODI stats of the World Champion.
It isn’t often that you call a career spanning 11 years a ‘short’ one, but such is the case with Stokes, who will retire from ODI cricket with just 105 matches. He leaves a format he is more suited to, especially in white ball cricket. Stokes’ impact goes beyond his stats. His ODI numbers seldom reflect the balance he brought to the mighty England team, especially since 2016.
A career of 2 halves
Till the end of 2015, just when England had started their ODI revolution, Stokes had mediocre returns with both bat and ball. In the 34 ODIs till then, Stokes averaged 20.14 with the bat, scoring just two half centuries. His strike rate was a decent 86.21. In the bowling department, He lacked control and leaked runs at 6.22 RPO, but his average of 34.25 was far better than his career average of 41.79.
Since 2016, Ben Stokes focused more on his batting in the ODIs. In his last 70 matches, Stokes averages 50.53 with the bat, including all his three centuries, along with 19 half centuries. His strike rate improved drastically and jumped to 97.61. However, his bowling took a backseat. His economy rate improved and went below 6 RPO, but his 42 wickets came at 47.54 runs apiece.
One of the best #5
Since his ODI debut, only one player has more runs batting at #5 (Angelo Matthews – 2,951) than Stokes’ 1,995 runs. Stokes’ batting average of 48.65 is the third-best for anyone with more than 600 runs at #5 since his debut. His 52 Sixes are the second-most for any batter in this period, behind his ex-skipper, Eoin Morgan (59 Sixes).
All three of his ODI centuries came in when Stokes batted at #5.
Legacy
Stokes’ ODI legacy will always be the World Cup-winning inning of 84* against New Zealand in 2019. But even more than that, he was that player who provided the perfect balance to the dominating England side. An ever-reliable middle-order bat, Stokes not only had a golden touch with the ball in his hands, but he also had a habit of taking breathtaking catches on the field.
With the 50-over World Cup scheduled next year, especially in conditions where Stokes has achieved huge success, the timing of his retirement has surely shocked the cricketing world. Stokes will leave behind a void so huge that England might need two people to balance their line-up. When Ben Stokes sits down in the dressing room of his home ground in Durham on the evening of 19th July, he can look back at a glittering career that helped England dominate the world for nearly seven years.