England coach Brendon McCullum said his initial reaction of bewilderment and anger at Ben Stokes breaching team protocols has given way to 鈥渨orry and concern鈥� following the nightclub incident that has left his captain’s in the balance.
Stokes and teammate Gus Atkinson were last week ahead of the second test against New Zealand starting Wednesday while they are following their night out after England’s victory in the first test at Lord’s.
The night ended with a member of England鈥檚 security staff being reportedly struck by a rugby player from English club Saracens in a nightclub, where Stokes was present. The saga has heaped more scrutiny on the professionalism and culture around England鈥檚 test team 鈥� led by McCullum and Stokes 鈥� following a , after which a midnight curfew was reportedly imposed on England鈥檚 players and staff.
McCullum spoke publicly about the incident for the first time on Monday and said his priority now is taking care of Stokes, more than deciding what the punishment should be.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been about how we support these guys, whilst not overlooking the fact that they鈥檝e not lived up to the standards which we鈥檝e set for ourselves,鈥� McCullum said. “You can鈥檛 look past that, per se.
鈥淏ut at the same time, we鈥檒l deal with that in time and through a process. But for me, it鈥檚 very much about how we support these guys through the next stage, and in particular, Ben. And that鈥檚 very much where my mind is at 鈥� I worry for him.鈥�
McCullum, who has formed a close bond with Stokes since arriving as England’s test coach in 2022, rejected the chance to publicly back his friend to stay on as captain, saying the leadership team needed to 鈥済o through a process.鈥�
鈥淲hat will be will be, down the line. Those decisions, they鈥檙e not for now,鈥� McCullum said. 鈥淭he concern at the moment is making sure that Ben is fine, and we need to look after him, rally around him, and in time, get onto those sorts of decisions.鈥�
Rob Key, England’s director of cricket, last week said the England and Wales Cricket Board was considering imposing an alcohol ban on the England team, with the most recent Ashes tour highlighting an apparent drinking culture that still exists.
McCullum said his preference would be to allow players to celebrate their wins, just not to 鈥渆xcess.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 in charge of the environment and I take responsibility for things which don鈥檛 work out 鈥� what you can鈥檛 do is you can鈥檛 make every single decision for people as well,鈥� he said.
鈥淢y job is to try and shape this environment, try and shape these young men who are dealing with the high pressure and high scrutiny of playing international cricket on the larger stage, and being away from home 12 months of a year, and the challenges have come with that. I do believe there is a place to never want to kill the joy, so to speak. I think it鈥檚 vitally important that you celebrate your successes.鈥�
England gives test debuts to Cox and Baker
With Stokes and Atkinson unavailable and Ollie Robinson out injured, England had to make changes for the second test at The Oval and they include giving test debuts to pacer Sonny Baker and middle-order batter Jordan Cox.
Two other changes see fast bowlers Jofra Archer and Matthew Fisher come in. Offspinner Shaoib Bashir drops out.
Joe Root, the predecessor to Stokes as captain, will lead the team in the regular skipper’s absence.
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