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In order to help him recover from his injury, England Test captain Ben Stokes stopped drinking at the beginning of 2025. He hopes to be back to his best before the Ashes later this year and the high-profile series against India next month. Stokes had surgery after tearing his hamstring during the New Zealand trip in December of last year. He was sidelined for six months as a result of the setback, but he will now return to competition later this week in a one-off Test match against Zimbabwe.

Stokes has had to cope with the same ailment twice since August of last year. After suffering a hamstring injury during The Hundred, he recovered in time for the tour of New Zealand.

However, he has altered his strategy this time.

“I recall being shocked after my first serious injury, wondering, ‘How has this happened?'” after the first adrenaline rush had subsided. Could it have been influenced by the fact that we had a little drink four or five nights prior? He told the Untapped podcast, “It wouldn’t have helped.”

“After that, I realized that I needed to start altering my behavior.” I haven’t taken a drink since January 2, but I doubt I’ll ever be really sober. “Not until I complete my injury rehab and return to the field,” he said.

Stokes acknowledged that he has had to work very hard to get back to his best form, but he has no intention of stopping anytime soon.

“I believe that the day I wake up and decide I can’t bear to complete the training program is approaching the point at which you no longer want it.” However, I’m not interested in stopping. Simply said, doing everything is becoming more difficult. For this reason, I believe that in order to have the greatest opportunity of performing on the field, I need to work considerably harder off the field, in the gym, and in other places. However, I’ll continue for as long as I can,” he said.

Stokes discussed how the demands of the contemporary game have drastically changed cricket’s drinking culture.

“There were amazing tales (about drinking) throughout the 1990s and 2000s. Over the years, everything has undoubtedly calmed down considerably. The physical demands of the game are greater than they were before. The body just cannot handle all of that without the negative effects of what a few drinks at the end of the day can do to you the following day,” he added. “There is so much more cricket and so much more on the calendar.”