Ben Stokes' documentary to continue filming during England's Test tour of West Indies - Reports
England all-rounder Ben Stokes will reportedly have a camera crew during next month's West Indies tour to film a documentary. According to The Guardian, the 30-year old has spent the last 18 months secretly working on a feature-length film about his life and career.
The documentary will enlighten viewers about the player's formative years and family life after moving to Cumbria from New Zealand, aged 12. Additionally, it will include the death of Stokes' father in December 2020 and the break he took last year from the game to focus on his mental health.
Ben Stokes becomes England's Headingley hero with miraculous knock to level the series: cricket.com.au/news/match-rep… #Ashes https://t.co/Fn0Qi6H4Gz
It will also hark back to the all-rounder's golden summer of 2019 when Stokes spearheaded England to World Cup glory and played a blinder at Headingley in the third Ashes Test. Despite the New Zealand-born player's reluctance, his controversial street fight incident in Bristol in 2017 will also be dissected.
The Guardian has reported that the feature-length film is still in the production stage, and the England Cricket Board (ECB) has approved the project. His teammates have also been interviewed in the documentary. However, the ECB must give a final sign-off before it is released, as it involves a centrally-contracted player.
Ben Stokes pulls of the IPL 2022 mega auction
Meanwhile, following England's 4-0 Ashes loss, the all-rounder has pulled out of the IPL mega auction.
The 30-year old said that his priorities lie in rebuilding the Test team alongside Joe Root, and will stick to playing County Championship games this summer. In his most recent column for the Daily Mirror, Ben Stokes wrote:
"Test cricket is absolutely my number one priority, and I want to work alongside Joe Root, the best man we could have as captain, to get us there. It is why I thought long and hard about whether to go to the IPL or not, and felt that this was not about the money but about where my priorities are. It wouldn’t be fair on any team I signed up for if I wasn’t totally focused on things out there."
We've named our squad of 16 for our three-match Test tour of the Caribbean 🏏
🏝 #WIvENG 🏴
The three-Test series in the Caribbean begins on March 8 at North Sound.