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England captain Ben Stokes is reportedly set to step down from the captaincy and also retire from Test cricket after being involved in a controversy alongside teammate Gus Atkinson at a nightclub after England's 115-run victory over New Zealand in the first Test of the summer at Lord's. They had a physical altercation with a Rugby player.
The two had an altercation with Totoa Auvaa, the former Samoa A and Samoa Under-20 captain, who stands 6ft 5in (1.95m) tall. Before the fight, Stokes and Atkinson were reported to have breached team curfew after going out at night to a club. The incident causes serious tensions right ahead of the 2nd Test match at the Oval.
He was caught breaking the team’s curfew- Geoffrey Boycott on Ben Stokes
The squad announcement is delayed amid the ongoing investigation and controversy, as the two players are set to face bans, and with Ben Stokes being England’s captain, this could affect his career; thus, he has thought of stepping down and retiring from the format. Amidst all this, former English captain Geoffrey Boycott has asked for strong action against Ben Stokes.
"The England and Wales Cricket Board has to make an example of Ben Stokes and slap him with a suspension after he was caught breaking the team’s curfew. You cannot have the captain blatantly breaking the rules and not do anything about it just because he is so important to the team," Boycott wrote in his column for The Telegraph.
Brendon McCullum and Key should have been sacked- Geoffrey Boycott
Geoffrey Boycott further added that even Ben Stokes cannot be treated differently from any other player, despite being the captain, if the latter is found guilty of breaching team rules. Boycott stated that responsibility now rests with England's cricket officials; however, he added that any decision on Stokes' future should await the results of the investigation.
"If Rob Key, the England director of cricket, or Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, are not up to the task of disciplining Stokes then they should not be in a job. I said before that Brendon McCullum and Key should have been sacked."
"Come on Rob and Brendon, what are you going to do about this? Whether Stokes should be sacked depends on the full circumstances of the incident. An investigation is ongoing and it has to get to the bottom of what happened before making that judgment call," he added.
Ben Stokes set to be punished by the ECB?
Boycott also stated that Stokes should be punished, which would send a clear message throughout English cricket that breaching the rules can seriously affect one's career. The former also emphasized maintaining leadership and discipline inside the dressing room.
"But that does not detract from the fact that Stokes as captain should be setting the tone. England cannot beat Australia next summer without discipline. And discipline applies off the field as well as on it. We don’t want a paltry fine. They earn so much money now that a few thousand quid means nothing to them. It is a suspension we need to see," he wrote.
