A couple of days ago, Ben Stokes played the match-winning 107-run innings for Rajasthan Royals to almost single-handedly lead them to triumph over a dominating Mumbai Indians. 

After his amazing performance, Stokes lifted his right hand with the middle finger folded. It was a gesture of respect towards his father, Gerard Stokes, who is currently battling brain cancer back home.

Ben Stokes’ folded finger gesture is a tribute to his father.

Ged Stokes’ middle finger, having sustained injuries playing & coaching rugby league, had to be amputated after unsuccessful surgeries in the past.

Ged Stokes has been recently diagnosed with brain cancer. pic.twitter.com/Dz1APLY3Jm

— Cricketopia (@CricketopiaCom) October 26, 2020

In the post-match presentation, Stokes said: 

"Things are a bit difficult right now, but hope this has given a bit of happiness back home. Saying goodbye to my dad, my mum and my brother in Christchurch was tough. It has been a difficult time for us as a family, but we've pulled together and supported each other as best we can."

He added:

"And I was able to get on the plane with my parents' love and blessing after we reached the decision, for me to get back playing, as a family with no external influences."

The folded-finger gesture that Stokes has been making for a while now has a rather inspirational story behind it.

Ben Stokes Middle Finger Celebration was a Tribute to his Father...

Ben Stokes Father had to cut off part of his middle finger after an injury to continue playing Rugby Nd Earn for his Family... ️

Huge Respect... @benstokes38
Once in a Generation player... pic.twitter.com/rU6cykInsp

— Bibhu (@Bibhu237) July 18, 2020

Gerard Stokes moved to England to work as a Rugby coach but prior to the shift, he himself was a league-lever Rugby player in New Zealand and was completely dedicated to the sport. 

As a contact sport, Rugby came with numerous injuries on a regular basis but for Stokes Sr., his middle finger became a constant source of brutal pain. It has been dislocated several times, completely bent out of shape and was in dire need of a surgery.

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A post shared by Ben Stokes (@stokesy) on Oct 26, 2020 at 7:29am PDT

Stokes couldn’t afford to sit out of the game, spending time on recovery and not playing the game that brought food to his family’s table.

And so, he chose the shortest route to get over his problems, he chose to get his finger amputated, according to reports by cricket.com.au.

Ben has always acknowledged how that one incident continues to motivate him as an athlete to do better. 

The Stokes family has been brave and managed to keep their spirits lifted despite getting the news of Ged being diagnosed with cancer in January 2020. Recently Stokes even revealed how he could not sleep for days after hearing the news.

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A post shared by Ben Stokes (@stokesy) on Oct 8, 2020 at 9:49am PDT

Despite the unfortunate fact, Stokes has been one of the best players in international cricket, at least for the past couple of years. His heroics during the Test series against the West Indies early in the year and now in the IPL have proven his emotional toughness. To be away from the family especially in such testing times and still be performing at such a high level, it takes a lot of courage.

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A post shared by Ben Stokes (@stokesy) on Oct 2, 2020 at 2:46pm PDT

Every once in a while, the world of sports produces a story that makes you fall in love with it all over again. Unlike fictional characters in the movies or books, these are real people dealing with real-life adversities. For them to keep thriving therefore becomes a major source of inspiration. We hope that Ben Stokes and his family Gerard come out of the hard-fought battle victorious and completely healthy.

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