Ben Stokes' suspension sees England stars set to give Jos Buttler's stag do a miss

Sport360 staff 21:53 30/09/2017
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  • Ben Stoke's Bristol City incident have made other players wary.

    Jos Buttler’s stag party in Amsterdam will be minus intended guests Joe Root and Stuart Broad as the Ben Stokes saga takes its toll on England’s end-of-season arrangements.

    England’s Test captain and frontline seamer have decided against joining this weekend’s social trip before the one-day international wicketkeeper’s wedding next month.

  • Jason Roy back to his old form and other talking points as England complete 4-0 series win over the West Indies

  • England star Ben Stokes suspended until further notice by the ECB

  • Buttler’s bash is not the only event subject to last-minute changes either, following Stokes’ arrest on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm after a night out in Bristol last Sunday.

    Stokes and limited-overs opener Alex Hales have been suspended from future international fixtures until further notice by the England and Wales cricket Board, while both their own and Avon & Somerset Police’s investigations continue.

    As England finished their longest ever summer with a nine-wicket win over West Indies at the Ageas Bowl to wrap up a 4-0 Royal London Series clean sweep on Friday, indications were that next week’s plans to announce both annual central contracts and the ODI squad to face Australia in the new year are likely to be put back too.

    Root and Broad are set to give Buttler's stag do a miss.

    Root and Broad are set to give Buttler’s stag do a miss.

    The ECB was aware of Buttler’s trip and has not requested any individuals withdraw from it, although director of cricket Andrew Strauss has spoken to several players to remind them of their responsibilities.

    He can at least be reassured by their continued excellence on the pitch against West Indies, after Jonny Bairstow’s unbeaten 141 – his second century in five innings as an ODI opener – and Jason Roy’s 96 helped to ease Eoin Morgan’s team to victory in pursuit of 288 for six with 12 overs to spare.

    The captain was full of praise for the manner in which his team has reacted to the obvious distractions of the past week, first with a series-sealing win at The Oval on Wednesday and then their impressive success in Southampton.

    “I think probably the most convincing thing about the last couple of days, and the distractions that have gone on, was the win at The Oval,” he said.

    “It was a chance to win the series.

    “Everything that had happened was quite fresh, and everybody had known about it for the last couple of days.

    “So to produce a performance like that in such a tight game obviously meant a huge amount to the side.”

    Bairstow's unbeaten ton led England to a nine wicket victory in Southampton.

    Bairstow’s unbeaten ton led England to a nine wicket victory in Southampton.

    England then had to raise one last effort on the south coast too.

    “I think today had the potential to be quite a lethargic performance,” added their captain.

    “But the determination and ruthlessness that everybody showed throughout was outstanding.”

    Meanwhile Avon & Somerset Police have issued an appeal for information from “two specific witnesses” believed to have been present in the early hours of Monday morning before the trouble which broke out in the Clifton Triangle area of Bristol.

    A police statement read: “We believe there are two specific witnesses, both men, with information about what happened in the moments prior to the disorder who are yet to come forward, and we’d appeal for them to do so as soon as possible.”

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