Ben Stokes has been extraordinary for English cricket, it should cut him some slack | Emma John

The sport’s misguided morals mean England’s Test captain has been humbled for a meaningless infraction and kept off the stage for which he was made

There are times when it’s possible to keep sport in a sensible perspective, and then there are weeks it challenges your very sanity.

This has felt like one of those.

Perhaps the US president erecting https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/03/donald-trump-ufc-arena-white-house-permanent">a cage‑fighting octagon in his back garden is – given the state of the world – not that crazy.

After all, it’s probably less tacky than https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/07/trump-white-house-ballroom">paving over the Rose Garden, or the proposed https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/apr/30/trump-white-house-ballroom-bunker">ballroom‑slash‑droneport‑slash‑https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/21/trump-arch-washington-dc">triumphal‑arch.

You say a World Cup referee https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jun/08/top-african-referee-omar-artan-refused-access-to-the-united-states">has been denied entry to the US because he’s from Somalia?

Well, really.

Anyone who didn’t see that coming hasn’t been paying attention.