Overview
- Stokes retired from international cricket during the Trent Bridge Test last month, ending a 15‑year career that included more than 250 appearances across formats.
- Former England great Ian Botham joked on BBC Test Match Special that Stokes had “joined the has‑beens club,” renewing a months‑long strain between the two players.
- Stokes answered on X by reposting the quip “It’s better to be a has‑been than a never‑been” and attributing the line to Botham, keeping the exchange at the level of broadcast banter and social media.
- The spat follows Botham’s public criticism of Stokes’s judgement after reports that Stokes and team‑mate Gus Atkinson breached a midnight curfew after England’s Lord’s win.
- Stokes has resumed training with Durham and is expected to feature in the Metro Bank One‑Day Cup, a move that shifts attention from his England exit to his domestic role and long‑term legacy.