Ajay Jadeja backs Ben Stokes after retirement call

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'I'm very happy': Jadeja reacts to Ben Stokes' shock retirement cricket news image
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Former India captain Ajay Jadeja has backed Ben Stokes’ decision to retire from international cricket, saying on Sony Sports that the England all-rounder made the "right call" after a decorated career.

Stokes’ announcement ended an England career that included major performances in the 2019 ODI World Cup final, the Headingley Ashes Test later that year, and other matches across formats. The Times of India report said Jadeja admired Stokes for standing by his principles.

Jadeja says Stokes resisted outside control

Jadeja said Stokes was right to make his own call, especially after circumstances in which people outside the field were trying to influence how a national captain should live.

Jadeja said, "I think he made the right call, and I’ll go one step further. Especially for a country’s cricket team captain to be told what he can do in the evening and what he can’t, there are some people who can take it, but geniuses like him are not going to be ruled by people who are not on the field."

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Jadeja added that instructions from inside the dressing room would have been different from directions coming from administrators. Jadeja said, "If there are people in the dressing room wanting you to do something, that is a different story. But when people running the game try and tell you how to live your life and what to do, I am very happy. Not happy that he’s going to retire and we won’t see him play, but here is a man who said, ‘OK, this is it.’ He has been a controversial man. He played controversially."

Retirement followed an off-field controversy

Stokes’ retirement came less than three weeks after an off-field controversy following England’s victory in the first Test against New Zealand.

The source report said Stokes and Gus Atkinson breached the team’s midnight curfew and were reportedly present during an incident at a London nightclub involving an ECB security staff member and a Saracens rugby player.

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The ECB made Stokes and Atkinson unavailable for the second Test while the Cricket Regulator conducted an investigation, with Joe Root stepping in as stand-in captain.

The Cricket Regulator later found insufficient evidence to establish any breach of ECB Cricket Regulations and cleared both players. The ECB also said no blame should be attached to either player for the violent incident, stating that Stokes was not involved in or witness to the altercation, while Atkinson was the victim of unprovoked attacks and did not retaliate.

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Manjrekar calls the exit the end of an era

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar said Stokes’ retirement saddened him because he viewed the England all-rounder as a player whose impact was not defined only by career numbers.

Manjrekar said, "It’s depressing for me on the count that two retirements of two all-time greats, Kane Williamson and Ben Stokes, and the surprising timing of the retirements as well."

Manjrekar said Stokes had a rare ability to deliver on major stages. Manjrekar said, "Ben Stokes, I maintained that this is not the guy who will average 50 or get 600 wickets, but he had this unique ability to perform greatness on the big stage and almost single-handedly win games for his country, whether it was Tests, ODIs or T20Is."

Manjrekar added, "That is the legacy he will leave, and I am feeling very unhappy. People that we worship and love to watch, we won’t be seeing them anymore."

Stokes leaves with defining England performances

Stokes’ England career is remembered in the source report for decisive performances across formats, including unbeaten innings and match-turning Test contributions.

Stokes made an unbeaten 84 in the 2019 ODI World Cup final against New Zealand, scored 135 not out at Headingley during the Ashes later that summer, and made a career-best Test score of 258 against South Africa in Cape Town in 2016.