By

Cricket correspondent at Trent Bridge

England captain Ben Stokes has made a stunning announcement to end his international career at the conclusion of the ongoing third Test against New Zealand.

All-rounder Stokes, one of the finest cricketers to ever play for England, was in the middle of a bowling spell at Trent Bridge when a statement was released confirming his intention to end a 15-year international career.

Incredibly, with the first delivery after news of his retirement was made public, Stokes took a wicket, having Zak Foulkes caught at second slip.

The 35-year-old missed England's second Test after being involved in an incident in a London nightclub.

Before his return to leading the team in Nottingham, he referred only to leading the team "this week".

And Stokes told his England team-mates of his decision before the fourth day of the deciding Test against the Black Caps.

Clearly emotional as he spoke in the England dressing room, 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 thing 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, it is an astonishing conclusion to a stellar career that produced some of the most iconic moments in English sporting history.

In the summer of 2019, his incredible 84 helped England win the World Cup for the first time, defeating New Zealand in what many regard to be the greatest game of cricket ever played.

Six weeks later, Stokes was at it again, this time defeating Australia in the third Ashes Test at Headingley almost single-handedly with 135 not out.

His exploits that summer led to Stokes being named as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Overall, the Durham man will have played 122 Tests for England, 44 of which as captain. He played 114 one-day internationals and 43 T20s, including a starring role in the T20 2022 World Cup final.

In characteristic fashion, Stokes was in the middle of a tireless spell on Sunday, attempting to haul his team back into the third Test, when the news broke.

Stokes had just completed his 10th successive over in the period after lunch and was fielding at mid-off when the news filtered around Trent Bridge.

In an electric atmosphere, with supporters on their feet, Stokes was roared to the crease. Foulkes' edge was held at second slip by vice-captain Harry Brook, Stokes' likely successor.

Stokes' status as one of the best all-rounders to play Test cricket are underlined by a career haul of 7,243 runs and 251 wickets. Legendary figures Sir Garfield Sobers of West Indies and South Africa's Jacques Kallis are the only two men to have achieved such a double. Stokes' 136 sixes in Test cricket is also a record.

Beyond the individual achievements, Stokes will be remembered for his style of captaincy - the 'Bazball' revolution brought about when he assumed control of the Test side with head coach Brendon McCullum in 2022.

Revitalising a team that had won only one of its previous 17 Test, Stokes and McCullum encouraged attacking, fearless cricket and enjoyed immediate success; England won 10 of their first 11 Tests in charge.

Although Stokes won almost 56% of his Tests as captain - the best success rate for an England skipper in 45 years - his methods were found wanting against the biggest opponents.

England had to fight from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Australia in the home Ashes of 2023. The following winter, England were beaten 4-1 in India.

Following the trip to India, Stokes and McCullum built a new England team - including pushing record wicket-taker James Anderson into retirement - with the aim of defeating India at home in 2025, then regaining the Ashes in Australia.

But England could only draw 2-2 with India, then were beaten 4-1 in Australia on a tour dogged by accusations of a drinking culture.

The drinking resulted in a midnight curfew being imposed, a curfew which Stokes then broke in his first match back following the Ashes.

Ultimately, the manner in which Stokes' career has come to a stunning end follows a number of other high-profile off-field incidents.

In 2017, Stokes was involved in an incident outside a Bristol nightclub that resulted in him being charged with affray. He was cleared the following summer, but missed the 2017-18 Ashes tour as a result.

In 2021, Stokes took a break from cricket to prioritise his mental wellbeing. In a documentary released the following year, Stokes detailed the toll taken by the Bristol incident and the death of his father, Ged.

Stokes' career was also blighted by a number of severe injuries, not least a left-knee problem that hampered his bowling in 2023 and 2024.

This summer, Stokes returned from a broken cheek suffered when struck by a ball while coaching the Durham academy.

He led England in the first Test against New Zealand, a win at Lord's, then missed the second, because of the nightclub incident.

Stokes and pace bowler Gus Atkinson were present when a member of England's security staff was struck by a Saracens rugby player.

Both cricketers were cleared to return for the third Test. Speaking to the media before the match in Nottingham, Stokes said he had apologised to his team-mates, but refused to say if he had felt supported by the England and Wales Cricket Board during the process.

Stokes also discussed his future as England captain when he told the BBC: "The England captaincy is one of those things where I'm 35 now and, even before this stuff all happened, I thought, 'Could I ever see myself playing for England and not being captain?'

"It's a question I've never really been able to answer, because it's been such a big part of this part of my career.

"You look at others who have stepped away from captaincy and kept playing - I don't really know. I love playing for England. I love being captain of this team and that's where I'm at with everything."

England will name a successor, probably Brook, for their next Test against Pakistan at Headingley in August.

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