Ben Stokes on First Test Defeat

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A candid documentary, Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes, is due to be released later this week, where the 31-year-old speaks about his struggles with mental health and his experiences of having anxiety attacks. In the documentary, crafted by Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes, Ben Stokes reveals he had a panic attack once while visiting the dry cleaners. Not only this, but the England Men’s Test cricket captain also spoke about how he has seen a clinical psychologist and now takes medication.

Just last year, Stokes took an “indefinite break” from the sport to focus on his mental wellbeing, and allow his left index finger to heal following his breaking it during a spell with the Rajasthan Royals in April 2021.

In an interview with the Telegraph this week, he said: “I find sometimes people are a bit nervous to go into the detail about that kind of stuff with me.

“It’s perceived you can’t feel a certain way, that’s a sign of weakness to show that you are not mentally feeling great.

“People think they can’t ask people who have struggled. No. It’s fine. I’ll happily tell you as much as I possibly can.”

Joe Root, former Test captain and fellow teammate, praised Stokes for his bravery in an interview with Sky Sports ahead of England’s second Test match against South Africa on Thursday, 25 August.

He said: “I think it shows great courage and great bravery to go and speak openly about that sort of stuff and some of the struggles that he has personally been through.”

Stokes also told the Guardian of his plight: “I didn’t know what was happening. The best way to explain it is, not a two-week thing but a huge buildup of multiple things over time. It’s like you’re a glass bottle, you keep putting things in there and eventually over time there’s no more room and it smashes.”

According to the Mental Health Foundation, three times as many men as women take their own lives with males between the ages of 40 and 49 having the highest rate of suicide.

Express.co.uk takes a look at other sportsmen who, like Stokes, have gone public about their personal battles in order to help change how mental health in sport is viewed.

Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time with a staggering 28 medals, was among those who spoke about his mental health difficulties.

Speaking on HBO’s ‘The Weight of Gold’, the American swimmer revealed he had previously had suicidal thoughts.

In the documentary, released in 2020, the 37-year-old said: “I had a great career. It doesn’t matter.

“I wasn’t happy with who I was: I thought of myself as just a swimmer and not a human being, not a person. No self-love, no self-confidence.”

England and GB Rugby League professional, Terry Newton, took his own life in 2010 which significantly altered the sporting landscape, bringing players’ mental well-being to the fore.

After former rugby league footballer, Ian Knott, was suddenly retired in 2005 due to an injury, he revealed that he was “ready to take his own life”.

He is now a mental health ambassador, working with State of Mind, which provides “mental health, wellbeing and working life of rugby league players and communities”.

Following Welsh professional footballer and manager Gary Speed also tragically taking his own life in November 2011, several footballers have told of their own personal mental health battles during their playing days.

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Ex-Liverpool and Aston Villa striker, Stan Collymore, revealed that he had been to see a doctor about his mental health, but was not taken seriously at the time.

Writing in his column in the Mirror in 2020, the 51-year-old said: “I’ve spoken openly and honestly about the problems I have faced since they first surfaced towards the end of my time at Liverpool, when I vividly remember lying in the pink bath at my home – a colour scheme I inherited from the house’s previous owner, I hasten to add – and wondering what was wrong me with me because I had so little energy.

“That is how the illness manifested itself in me and still does now.”

And former Celtic player and manager, Neil Lennon, revealed depression led him to become paranoid and no longer wanting to play football.

The documentary, Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes will be on Prime Video on Friday, August 26 2022. 

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