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Cricket Players'You sat on the toilet in your hotel room, having a massive panic attack': Ben Stokes reveals mental health struggles
The England Test captain had taken an indefinite break from the game in July 2021 to prioritise his mental well being.
England Test captain Ben Stokes has opened up on the mental health struggles that put him away from the game in 2021, revealing that he was crippled with panic attacks as he endured the challenging time. Stokes, who was named the Test captain in April, also spoke about the difficulties he faced, including the death of his father and the assault charges following an altercation in Bristol in 2017 in a documentary.
"I never thought that I would feel like I do now," Stokes said in the trailer for the documentary which was released earlier on Thursday. "My anxiety has gone through the roof. You sat on the toilet in your hotel room and you are having a massive panic attack."
The interview also featured interviews from Stokes' England teammates Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, and Joe Root. Broad, who has been one of England's longest-serving players in the current red-ball setup, revealed that he feared Stokes would never play for the side again.
"I could have seen him never playing again," said Broad, who has 537 wickets to his name in 152 matches. Archer, meanwhile, said, "That experience would have broken lesser mortals," as he talked about Stokes' struggles.
Ben Stokes took an indefinite break from the game in June 2021 to "prioritise his mental wellbeing."
"Ben has shown tremendous courage to open up about his feelings and wellbeing," then-Managing Director of England Men's Cricket, Ashley Giles had said following the announcement.
"Our primary focus has always been and will continue to be the mental health and welfare of all of our people. The demands on our athletes to prepare and play elite sport are relentless in a typical environment, but the ongoing pandemic has acutely compounded this," Giles had further added.
Stokes returned to international cricket during the Ashes series in December 2021, and succeeded Joe Root as England's new Test skipper last month.
