It was a telling remark, especially when revisited two months later.
鈥淚 probably won鈥檛 be real happy and smiley,鈥� then-England cricket captain Ben Stokes told reporters after beating New Zealand in a at Lord鈥檚 in June, 鈥渦ntil I get up there and share a proper beer with the boys.鈥�
After all, having a post-match drink with teammates and sometimes rivals in the dressing room is a cricketing tradition as old as time.
Is English cricket taking it to the extreme?
The off-field conduct and drinking habits of England’s men’s squad are back under scrutiny this week after involving one of its players.
This time it was Brydon Carse, a 31-year-old fast bowler and one of the team鈥檚 success stories in recent years. The images of him outside a club in the early hours of Sunday in handcuffs and surrounded by police officers were hard to ignore, especially as the saga came days after .
鈥淯ltimately you鈥檙e grown adults,鈥� said Root, speaking after England’s leadership opted to scrap a midnight curfew that had been imposed on the men’s team following a string of controversial late-night incidents.
鈥淵ou know what it takes to play for England, you know what your responsibilities are off the field, and we need to make sure we don鈥檛 find ourselves with any little situations off the field.鈥�
Seems the message didn’t get across to his players.
鈥淚f I鈥檓 being brutally honest, I鈥檓 really hacked off. I鈥檓 really disappointed,鈥� Root said in a news conference on Tuesday.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not the isolated incident itself,鈥� Root added. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the fact we continually keep making stupid mistakes away from the game and it鈥檚 detracting from what we鈥檙e doing on the field.鈥�
And so, with England’s Cricket Regulator getting down to work investigating another off-the-field issue, it’s back to square one.
Is it time for a cultural reset? In this age of sports science and ultra-professionalism, there are wider questions over whether cricketers should have a beer after a match. Or do players just need to be a bit smarter?
鈥淛ust have some kind of brain cells amongst you, seeing what鈥檚 just gone on,鈥� former England captain Alastair Cook said on the Stick to Cricket podcast released Tuesday. 鈥淪urely someone says either don鈥檛 go to that place, or at 12 a.m. or 1 a.m. say, ‘Let鈥檚 go and find ourselves somewhere quieter if we want to carry on.鈥�
Here’s a look at the late-night incidents that have brought shame on English cricket:
Brook hit by a bouncer
Before going to Australia for what proved a humiliating Ashes series, England traveled to New Zealand in October for a white-ball tour.
A day before the third and final one-day international, team captain was hit by a bouncer after being denied entry to a club in Wellington. Teammates Jacob Bethell and Josh Tongue also were present on the night out.
Brook was fined about 30,000 pounds ($40,300) at the time and given a final warning about his future conduct 鈥� sanctions not made public until months later, after the Ashes series that England lost 4-1.
鈥淚 want to apologize for my actions,鈥� Brook said. 鈥淚 fully accept that my behavior was wrong and brought embarrassment to both myself and the England team.鈥�
Disorientated Duckett’s night out in Noosa
Between the second and third tests in the Ashes series against Australia in December, England visited the resort town of Noosa on the Sunshine Coast for some downtime in the midst of a long tour.
While there, footage was taken of England opening batter as he talked to a group of people on a night out and saying he was unable to remember how to get back to his hotel.
鈥淚 am sorry for that incident, it was not professional and shouldn鈥檛 have happened,鈥� Duckett later said. 鈥淭here is no hiding away from it.鈥�
Rob Key, England managing director of men鈥檚 cricket, said he would investigate the drinking habits of the England team.
Stokes’ post-Lord’s night out leads to retirement
Chastened by the Ashes hammering in the winter, England began its so-called 鈥渞eset鈥� with a home series against New Zealand in June.
After winning the first test, Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson continued their post-match celebrations at Lord’s by going on a night out in London, during which a member of England鈥檚 security staff was reportedly struck by a rugby player from English club Saracens.
The was huge: Stokes and Atkinson were amid an investigation that ultimately found that had occurred. Stokes then returned for the third match, only to from international cricket midway through it, saying the past few months had 鈥渢aken its toll.鈥� Brendon McCullum then was fired as test coach, while Key said the England and Wales Cricket Board was considering imposing an alcohol ban on the team.
Carse in cuffs outside nightclub as Stokes watches on
Strictly speaking, Carse’s night out wasn’t while he was on England duty. It came after his club side, Durham, completed a big win over Derbyshire in the domestic County Championship on Saturday.
Carse was among the players selected in the England squad for the last week, but wasn’t picked to play in the match and was released to feature for Durham.
Ahead of his ill-fated night out, Carse had been retained in England’s squad for the second test starting Thursday. He was on Monday because an investigation was ongoing into the incident, which saw Carse held in handcuffs by police after, according to Britain’s Press Association, being briefly arrested.
England bowler Matthew Potts was with Carse on the night out, while footage that circulated on social media showed Stokes watching on as Carse was in handcuffs.
With Carse yet to comment on the incident, it was left to Root to say his teammate is 鈥渧ery upset, has been very apologetic, and understands his actions.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it has been a very good look, the recent past, if I鈥檓 being brutally honest,鈥� Root said. 鈥淎t all.鈥�
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