One of the most complete all-round cricketers in the world is England’s Ben Stokes. Born in Christchurch, New Zealand, he moved to England at the age of twelve years. He has represented the English cricket team in all three formats of the game. The current English test skipper has played over 100 ODI matches for his national side, before announcing his ODI retirement in July, 2022. In this article, we will have a look at the top ten ODI innings by the England great.
1. 79 Vs West Indies
Chasing 290 against the West Indies at Barbados in February, 2019, England were in a state of bother at one point of time after losing three wickets for just sixty runs. Then came Ben Stokes to the crease. Along with captain Morgan, he built a very good partnership. Stokes scored 79 runs off 85 balls, hitting 7 fours and a couple of sixes, before getting dismissed by Jason Holder. He had a good strike-rate of above 90. However, his and Morgan’s knock went in vain as the other England batters failed miserably, enabling the West Indies to win the match.
2. 79 Vs India
Stokes played an important knock of 79 runs in the 2019 World Cup match against a very strong Indian side at Edgbaston. After Bairstow’s century, it was Ben Stokes who propelled the English ship forward. His 79 runs came in just 54 balls, comprising 6 boundaries and three massive hits. He played a perfect finisher’s role as he hit at a strike-rate of 146. Though India put on a good fight in their innings, still could not chase down England’s huge total of 337 runs.
3. 82* Vs Srilanka
Stokes scored yet another important knock at the 2019 World Cup at Headingley, Leeds against Srilanka, but this time in a losing cause. Chasing just 233 runs, England lost wickets at regular intervals. Apart from Joe Root and Ben Stokes, no one else contributed significantly. Stokes scored an unbeaten 82 in 89 balls, hitting 7 boundaries and 4 sixes, striking at a rate of over 90. However, lack of contributions from the other end helped Srilanka win the important World Cup game. Stokes’ vital knock went in vain.
4. 89 Vs Australia
Stokes’ brilliant form in the World Cup 2019 continued as he scored another half-century against the mighty Aussies in the group stage game at Lord’s. Chasing 286 runs, it was only Ben Stokes who played a decent innings. He played a steady innings of 89 runs in 115 balls, hitting 8 fours and 2 sixes. He had a decent strike-rate of about 77 as he tried his level best to propel England to victory. However, poor batting from the others enabled the Aussies to win the match by 64 runs.
5. 89 Vs South Africa
As earlier mentioned, the British all-rounder was in sublime form in the 2019 World Cup from the very first game. In the first game of the tournament between the hosts and the Proteas at the Oval, England batted first and posted a total of 311 runs on the board. Though Jason Roy, Root and Morgan scored half-centuries each, it was Ben Stokes who stole the limelight. He played a fine innings of 89 runs in just 79 balls, smashing the ball to the boundary rope as many as nine times. He also picked up a couple of wickets. England won the match comfortably and Ben Stokes was awarded the Player of the Match for his all-round display.
6. 99 Vs India
Stokes came very close to his fourth ODI century in the second match of the series against India in 2021 at Pune. Chasing a mammoth total of 337,the English openers gave their team a proper start. As the first wicket fell for 110 runs, Stokes came out in the middle and carried the momentum forward. He played a quickfire knock of 99 runs in just 52 balls, hitting 4 fours and as many as 10 huge hits. His strike-rate was well over 190 in this electrifying innings. However, he was dismissed by Bhuvaneshwar Kumar on 99, just one short of his fourth ODI ton leaving him heartbroken. However, England won the match comfortably as they chased down their target in 43.3 overs.
7. 101 Vs Bangladesh
Stokes’ first-ever ODI century came against Bangladesh at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur on 7th October, 2016. Batting first, England were in deep trouble at one point of time when they lost three wickets for just 63 runs. It was then Stokes came out to bat and steadied the ship. Facing 100 balls, he reached to his first ODI three-figure mark, hitting 8 boundaries and 4 massive sixes and having a strike-rate of just above 100. His century helped the visitors post 309 runs and eventually win the match too.
8. 101 Vs South Africa
Stokes scored a vital century against the Proteas at Southampton in the second match of the series between the two nations in May, 2017. Batting first, England lost three wickets for just 80 runs when Stokes walked out in the middle. He hit a 79-ball 101, thus steadying the English innings. His knock comprised 11 boundaries and 3 sixes. He had a very good strike-rate of above 127 and helped his team post a huge 330 runs. It was a well-fought game between the two sides, as the visitors also put on a good fight when they came out to bat. However, they could not go past the finishing line as they lost the match by a whisker, by a narrow margin of just a couple of runs. Ben Stokes’ century and a wicket won him the Man of the Match.
9. 102* Vs Australia
The knock that ranks second in this list is his century against the mighty Aussies in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy at Birmingham. Chasing 278, the home side were in deep, deep trouble when they lost three early wickets for a meager 35 runs. Then captain Morgan and Stokes played a crucial knock to keep the English hopes alive. Stokes played an unbeaten knock of 102 runs in 109 balls, sending the ball to the fence 13 times and hitting a couple of huge sixes too. His knock helped his team emerge victorious in this battle, and he was adjudged the Player of the Match for his all-round performance.
10. 84* Vs New Zealand
It’s not always the number of runs which matter, but the impact it has on the match and the importance of the particular game which makes the difference. Such was his innings against his homeland New Zealand in the all-important 2019 ICC World Cup Final at the iconic Lord’s in London. Chasing 242 in the do-or-die finale, England never looked settled. Making the situation worse, they lost four wickets for just 86 runs. Just when everybody thought that the Kiwis were cruising to a comfortable victory, Ben Stokes proved everyone wrong. He went on to play a responsible unbeaten innings of 84 runs in 98 runs, hitting 5 fours and a couple of sixes. His strong and steady presence at the crease, along with Buttler’s 59 slowly and steadily changed the momentum of the game. Ben Stokes played till the end and helped England tie the match. The match progressed to a super over, which was a tie as well. Ultimately, the hosts were adjudged the winner on the basis of boundary count. This dramatic final ended with Ben Stokes adjudged the Man of the Match award for helping his team win their first ever World Cup title. The sheer importance of this knock in England’s most important cricket match ever ranks first in this list.
