Reliving The Glory

In his new book, all-rounder Ben Stokes remembers his World Cup journey, match by match, and takes the reader into the champions’ dressing room

- Neeru Bhatia

Fiery, expressive, assertive; a winner all the way. Ben Stokes epitomises all these descriptions and more. England’s hero in the 2019 World Cup and the Ashes has been a controversial figure who has had a rocky relationship with the home media. And so, his second book, On Fire: My Story of England’s Summer to Remember, is his way of sharing his thoughts on all that preceded and happened during the World Cup and the drawn Ashes series that followed. The book is set to release in India in the coming months.

Be it the unprecedented Super Over in the World Cup final or the dramatic win in the third Ashes Test at Headingley, it seems like the more Stokes tries to be an ordinary human being, the more he has extraordinary moments in his life.

In his book, Stokes says he finds it surprising that he has a fan following and that his face is splashed across the front and back pages of newspapers, an honour usually reserved for the famous footballers of the country. Stokes is one of the reasons a new generation is following cricket in England, and the book will only add to his growing legend.

The all-rounder is the X factor that spurred on England, led by Eoin Morgan and featuring a set of players with no baggage of past losses, to finally become a World Cup-winning team. Stokes says he found himself in match-winning positions so often because of the platform his teammates built. He also credits his time with the Rajasthan Royals for honing his big-match mentality.