The England cricket team have decided to undertake a self-policing measure during their upcoming tour to Australia, in which they have promised not to drink 2-3 days before a match but will also not have an official curfew imposed on them.
Furthermore, if any player leaves the team hotel after dinner, he’s expected to inform their security officers of the same.
The decision comes as a way to avoid further incidents such as that of Ben Stokes, in which the all-rounder was arrested after a bust-up outside a pub.
“It doesn’t matter if you have rules and regulations and curfews. In the end, it’s the players’ own choice whether they break a rule or work things out for themselves.
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“The players have sat down, had a bit of a chat and come up with a few small rules and regulations, and a belief or agreement among themselves that they will be doing the right thing and looking after themselves,” head coach Trevor Bayliss was quoted as saying by The Telegraph, London.
Bayliss further went on to add that asking the players to follow a strict regimen over the entire length of the series was a little too much to ask for. “There will be times when they are able to go out and have a few beers. It’s a long tour; you can’t be cooped up in a hotel room for four months.
{{/usCountry}}Bayliss further went on to add that asking the players to follow a strict regimen over the entire length of the series was a little too much to ask for. “There will be times when they are able to go out and have a few beers. It’s a long tour; you can’t be cooped up in a hotel room for four months.
{{/usCountry}}“It’s a case of being sensible and professional, that doesn’t change with set rules in place or not.”
Stokes was found to cause actual bodily harm to a person in Bristol on September 24 and was handed an indefinite ban by the England Cricket Board after a video emerged in which he was seen in a heated altercation with another person.
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Bayliss added that this was particularly why “informing the security officer” was reinforced. “One of the things is reinforcing that if they do go out, they need to let security know where they’re going,” he said.
The head coach further admitted that while he has already written off Ben Stokes for the series, if he did happen to turn up he was quite sure that the all-rounder would slip back into the side very easily.