I’ve been exceptionally lucky to have attended a large number of thrilling, historic sporting events. Right near the top of the list is the 2019 ODI Cricket World Cup Final at Lord’s. Not yet captain, Ben Stokes was key as England claimed the trophy that day, beating New Zealand.
First, he played a fabulous innings of 84 to help tie the scores. Then out he came again to face the extra set of six balls for each side. That ended in a Jos Buttler stumping and absolute pandemonium in the Home of Cricket.
The media quickly branded it the Champagne Super Over. I have never been part of anything quite like it.
Mere weeks later came that Ashes innings of 135 at Headingley. I watched it culminate in the South Stand bar at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Nobody wanted to go up for the match against Newcastle. We just wanted to watch Stokes bat.
After that remarkable summer, Ben Stokes was a national hero. A media darling. Sports Personality of the Year. Now he is retiring not just as England Test captain, but from Test cricket entirely. He is obviously entirely burnt out by it all. We in the media need to ask whether or not it is, at least in part, our fault.
In typical fashion, Stokes took a wicket with the delivery after his impending retirement became public. It is the kind of storyline that few get to generate. It is what made journalists and fans alike love him.
However, there has always been the sense that reporters were also waiting for him to slip up again. Just compare how the media covered him, compared to his predecessors as skipper Sir Alastair Cook and Joe Root. Yes, they are very different characters, but they were also given a greater benefit of the doubt. (I accept they probably don’t think that!)
Ben Stokes Doesn’t Want to Bat Against the Media Any More
The most infamous incident occurred in 2019. The Sun reported on a horrendous tragedy – the murder of Stokes’ two half-siblings committed by his mother’s ex-partner in New Zealand in 1988. The paper insisted at the time that there had been co-operation from the cricketer’s family and that the information was already out in New Zealand.
Stokes was furious, blasting the story as “immoral and heartless” in a statement. “I am aware that my public profile brings with it consequences for me that I accept entirely,” he said. “But I will not allow my public profile to be used as an excuse to invade the rights of my parents, my wife, my children or other family members.”
That report is no longer available online. The Sun apologised and paid damages.
Aside from that particular controversy, which is a perfect example of balancing what is “interesting to the public” and “in the public interest”, there have been various late-night incidents in the UK, including during this latest series. Furthermore, the Aussie media savaged him following the disastrous Ashes campaign last year.
There is no doubt, then, that Stokes has not helped himself. One Ashes disaster, one bust up on a night out, too many. He could though, make a legitimate case that he has been hounded, too.
Sports stars are not politicians, but they are icons and inspirations. They need to behave accordingly. Reporters have the right, indeed the responsibility, to point out when that is not happening. But there is a need for proportionality.
If journalists keep behaving like this, Ben Stokes will not be the last super talent to decide it’s all more trouble than it’s worth.
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