Ben Stokes revealed that masked burglars targetted his house – when his family were inside – while he was away captaining England in Pakistan.
Stokes said his family were not physically harmed but said a number of ‘sentimental’ items were taken.
The 33-year-old posted a series of pictures of some of the items stolen which included the medal for the OBE he received in 2020 after guiding England to a thrilling World Cup victory at Lords.
Also lost were three necklaces, an England cricket ring and a designer Christian Dior bag. One necklace was engraved with the words: ‘Some may be better but none will be braver’.
‘On the evening of Thursday 17th October a number of masked people burgled my home in the Castle Eden area in the North East,’ he said in a statement on social media.
‘They escaped with jewellery, other valuables and a good deal of personal items. Many of those items have real sentimental value for me and my family. They are irreplaceable.
‘This is an appeal for any help in finding these people who carried out this act. By far the worst thing about this crime is that it was carried out whilst my wife and 2 young children were in the house.
‘Thankfully, none of my family came to any physical harm. Understandably, however, the experience has had an impact on their emotional and mental state.
‘All we can think about is how much worse this situation could have been. I am releasing photographs of some of the stolen items – which I hope may be easily identified – in the hope that we can find the people who are responsible for this.
‘Although we have lost cherished possessions, to be clear, my sole motivation in sharing these photographs is not the recovery of material items. It is to catch the people who did this.’
Stokes missed the first game of the three-match series due to a hamstring injury but returned for the second Test in Multan. The day after the attack occurred, England fell to defeat to leave the series levelled 1-1.
They went on to lose the series 2-1 in last week’s third and final Test. Stokes endured a difficult series, making just 53 runs and five innings and bowling just ten overs.
The England skipper went on to encourage anyone with information to call Durham Constabulary on 101 quoting crime reference CRI00575927.
‘Finally, I want to say thank you to the police service,’ he added. ‘Both now and whilst I was away in Pakistan, their support for my family has been outstanding. They continue to work incredibly hard in trying to find these people.’
England’s white-ball side, which does not include Stokes, are currently in the West Indies where they will play three ODIs and five T20s.
Stokes will return to captain the Test side for a three-match series in New Zealand in November. The first Test begins on 27 November in Christchurch.
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