Ben Stokes has been named as the ‘Cricketer of the Year’ by Wisden in its 157th Almanack. Stokes breaks an uninterrupted run by Virat Kohli of winning this honour for the last three years. Kohli had won this honour for the 2016, 2017 and 2018 seasons.Stokes is the second England player to win this award in its 17-year history after Andrew Flintoff. 

Five other cricketers have been named as Cricketers of the Year – Jofra Archer, Pat Cummins, Marnus Labuschagne, Ellyse Perry and Simon Harmer. Stokes was Man of the Match at the World Cup Final played at Lords in 2019. Stokes also scored a heroic 135 not out in the Headingley Test, including an edge-of-the-seat 76-run partnership with Leach.