England's Cricket World Cup hero Ben Stokes publishes explosive broadside at The Sun for 'invading his family's privacy'

In the piece, The Sun published details about a private family tragedy in Ben Stokes' past.

In response, the England cricketer, whose heroic efforts propelled England at Headingley, posted a statement taking aim at The Sun.

It said: "Today The Sun has seen fit to publish extremely painful, sensitive and personal details concerning events in the private lives of my family, going back more than 31 years.

"It is hard to find words that adequately describe such low and despicable behaviour, disguised as journalism.

"I cannot conceive of anything more immoral, heartless or contemptuous to the feelings and circumstances of my family.

"For more than three decades, my family has worked hard to deal with the private trauma inevitably associated with these events and has taken great care to keep private what were deeply personal and traumatic events.

"On Saturday, The Sun sent a 'reporter' to my parents' home in New Zealand to question them, out of the blue, on this incredibly upsetting topic.

"If that wasn't bad enough, The Sun think it is acceptable to sensationalise our personal tragedy for their front page."

He added: "We need to take a serious look at how we allow our press to behave.

"Despite the fact that this has now been made public, I do please ask all concerned to respect my family's privacy and right to home life."

After the statement, the hashtag #dontbuythesun began trending on Twitter.