"It was my wife who told me not to" - Ben Stokes says he considered leaving PAK vs ENG 2024 Test series due to burglary in his house

England skipper Ben Stokes has revealed that he had realistically considered leaving the Test series midway in Pakistan in October due to the burglary in his house. However, the all-rounder disclosed that his wife was adamant about him staying with the team to complete the series.

Following the tour of Pakistan, the left-handed batter posted a lengthy message on his official account on X. He shared that a gang had burgled his house and stolen some valuable items. On November 1, it emerged that a 32-year-old man from North Yorkshire had been arrested in the case.

When asked whether he had considered leaving for England immediately, the seam-bowling all-rounder said, as quoted by BBC Sport:

"I did actually. It was my wife who told me not to. I always tell the lads that kind of stuff comes first. I asked my wife and she was adamant that I needed to stay out there."

Stokes had also struggled with injury problems before heading to Pakistan as a strained hamstring prevented him from playing the home series against Sri Lanka. He missed the opening Test against Pakistan, prompting Ollie Pope to take over. After returning for the final two Tests, the visiting captain struggled with the bat as England lost the series 2-1.

"I did physically drain and ruin myself" - Ben Stokes

Stokes expressed agitation at his teammates during the series in Pakistan due to dropped catches but later apologized as well. The 33-year-old recently claimed that recovering from the injury left him drained on multiple levels. The veteran vowed not to go down that route again, adding:

"I got so individually focused on myself over a long period of time trying to get back from injury, I did physically drain and ruin myself. That definitely had some kind of mental impact on me.

"It's made me realise that I can't take myself into that sort of area ever again, because not only does it have an impact on myself, but also has a massive impact on the team. There's no doubt that my frustration was showing when things weren't quite going our way."

Up next, England's first of the three Tests against New Zealand begins on November 28 in Christchurch.