England captain Ben Stokes has launched a passionate defence of his beleaguered team in the wake of claims of a boozy culture making their on-field results even worse.
Stokes said his priority leading into the Boxing Day Test was the welfare of his players as they face accusations of being unprofessional over excessive drinking.
Opening batter Ben Duckett was shown in footage which was leaked on social media in a heavily inebriated state with a bystander joking that he needed “an Uber to the nets”.
“How I handle this moment right now is the most important thing to me,” Stokes said.
“The welfare of everyone in there, and probably some certain individuals, is the most important thing to me right now as England captain.
“This kind of stuff is very, I don’t know if ‘close to me’ is the right wording, but something I have first-hand experience of how it can affect people.
“My role as England captain is to protect my players as much as I possibly can.”
Stokes has previously taken a break from the game to prioritise his mental health.
When asked directly if his team had done anything wrong durng their Sunshine Coast sojourn before the second Test, he responded: “I’ve just answered everything there.”
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