‘Dad told me I have a duty to do my job and I also have a duty as a husband and father’: Ben Stokes reveals his ill father Ged backed his return to cricket after compassionate leave
- Stokes has spoken of the emotional decision to end his compassionate leave
- He returned to New Zealand to spend time with his dad, who has brain cancer
- England all-rounder flew to Dubai on Saturday to meet up with Rajasthan Royals
Ben Stokes has spoken of the emotional decision to end his compassionate leave to be with his ill father Ged and play in the Indian Premier League.
Stokes, 29, has not played cricket since the first week of August after deciding to spend time with his dad, who has brain cancer, mum Deb and older brother James in Christchurch, New Zealand.
‘I didn’t know what dad wanted, I didn’t know what mum wanted — so to start that conversation off was the hardest thing of all,’ Stokes, who joined up with Rajasthan Royals on Sunday, told the Daily Mirror.
Ben Stokes with his dad Ged, mum Deb and older brother James before flying to play in the IPL
‘And then mum made it simple. She said, “The time you are spending here now with your dad is so much more important than the time you will spend when the worst happens”.
‘That is a tough thing to hear, but when it comes from your mum — and your dad is reinforcing that message — then it makes things a lot easier to deal with.
‘My dad told me I have a duty to do the job that I do and I have a duty as a husband and father as well.’
The England all-rounder flew to Dubai on Saturday to meet up with the Rajasthan Royals
