Ben Stokes, the captain of England’s Test team, admitted on Tuesday in Manchester that he had worried he would not play again after taking a significant hiatus from cricket last year to pay attention to his wellness.
After experiencing a string of panic attacks following the passing of his father from brain cancer almost two years ago, Stokes made the decision to put his mental health first.It didn’t last for more than a few days or weeks. It took a very, very long time to build up, perhaps even three or four years.
It was as if I had a glass bottle into which I kept pouring all of my feelings. It eventually overflowed and simply exploded.In an Amazon documentary that will be aired on Friday and incorporates interviews with former and current England players, including teammate Stuart Broad, Stokes speaks in-depth about his mental health.
Broad claims in the documentary teaser that he could have imagined Stokes retiring, and Stokes responded when asked if the thought had ever entered his head: “At the time, sure. That was my location.
During my absence, Stokes said, “I had never brought that up with Stuart. I talked to him a lot at that time, but it was more casual conversation and nothing too serious. I had never told him that I couldn’t play again, but the fact that he felt that way made me realise how bad things really were.
