NOTTINGHAM: A dominant display from New Zealand on day four brought them on the verge of a series-clinching win against England on a wearing pitch at Trent Bridge on Sunday.
At stumps, England were 103-4 — with Stokes out after opening the innings in another surprise move — and needing 270 more runs to win.
Ben Stokes announcement was made public shortly before tea on the fourth day with the 35-year-old, one of the outstanding all-rounders of his generation, having informed his team-mates before the start of Sunday’s play.
He was in the middle of a lengthy bowling spell, with news filtering into a stunned crowd — who gave him a standing ovation — as he was about to start his 11th over.
And in a moment of pure sporting theatre, Stokes had Zak Foulkes caught at slip with his next ball to spark yet more raucous cheers.
Ben Stokes — normally a middle-order batter — then came out to open the innings for just the third time in his 122-Test career.
Stokes signalled his intentions with a fierce drive off his first ball faced before he was dropped soon afterwards.
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He later lofted New Zealand’s Foulkes for a legside six and cleared the ropes again when he slog-swept seamer Nathan Smith.
But Stokes was out for 30 off 20 balls when he slogged Foulkes to wide mid-on, with England 50-1.
Four balls later, Jacob Bethell was lbw to Foulkes for a duck and before stumps of a frantic final session both Harry Brook and first-innings century-maker Ben Duckett had been dismissed as well.
Sunday’s shock announcement came after Stokes returned to England duty at Trent Bridge following the fall-out from a London nightclub incident also involving teammate Gus Atkinson earlier this month.
The pair were omitted from England’s 253-run defeat in the second Test at the Oval for breaking a midnight curfew while celebrating following the first-Test win over New Zealand.
Earlier, Mitchell batted for more than six-and-a-half hours, facing 241 balls including 10 fours after suffering several painful blows from England’s pace attack
He also shared a fourth-wicket stand of 129 with Rachin Ravindra, who fell short of a century when dismissed for 94 and also received good support from tailender Ben Sears.
Sears, having retired hurt, returned at the fall of the ninth wicket to ensure Mitchell, on 92, could complete his hundred.
