“OMG! No way! You’re a JOKE” – Alastair Cook’s reaction to Ben Stokes’ drive as they play golf ahead of ODI World Cup

Former England captain Alastair Cook and current skipper Ben Stokes played golf at the Ryder Cup venue Marco Simone Golf and County Club on Thursday, September 21.

In a video shared by Sky Sports on X (previously known as Twitter), Cook was seen awestruck with Stokes’s drive while playing the game. It captioned the video:

“OMG! No way! You’re a JOKE!”

For the uninitiated, Cook is the second-most successful England Test skipper after Joe Root (27 wins in 64 games). The 38-year-old has guided his team to 24 wins in 59 matches. Stokes, meanwhile, has guided England to 13 wins in 19 Tests.

Stokes made his Test debut against Australia in December 2013. The all-rounder has played 97 Tests, with 6117 runs and 197 wickets.

On the other hand, Cook has played 161 Tests with 12,472 runs, including 33 tons and 57 half-centuries. The former opener is England’s highest run-scorer in Tests. He retired from international cricket in September 2018.

---

Ben Stokes registers highest individual score for England in ODIs

Ben Stokes, who recently came out of his ODI retirement for the 2023 ODI World Cup, recently smashed 182 runs off 124 balls, including nine sixes and 15 boundaries against New Zealand at the Oval. England won the match by 181 runs.

With 182, he also broke the previous record held by Jason Roy for the highest individual score by an English batter in ODIs.

Watch the highlights:

The 32-year-old finished the four-match series with 235 runs in three innings at an average of 78.33. England won the series 3-1 at home.

Stokes was instrumental for England in the last ODI World Cup at home, scoring 465 runs in 11 games. Overall, he has scored 3159 runs and scalped 74 wickets in 108 ODIs. He will now look to deliver in the upcoming edition of the ICC tournament in India.

England will begin their World Cup 2023 campaign against runners-up New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday, October 5.

The defending champions will also play two warmup games against India and Bangladesh in Guwahati on September 30 and October 2 ahead of the marquee ICC event.