England captain Ben Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson have been cleared of any wrongdoing following an investigation into an incident at a nightclub that occurred after their team’s win over New Zealand earlier this month. The pair had already been sent written warnings by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for breaching a team curfew and were omitted from the second Test against New Zealand. However, both players are expected to return for the deciding third Test of the series, which starts on Thursday at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. On Monday, the independent Cricket Regulator confirmed that no disciplinary action will be taken against any player after completing its review of the matter. The controversy arose from events following England’s victory in the opening Test, when Stokes and Atkinson stayed outside the team’s midnight curfew and visited a London nightclub. During the same evening, a team security officer was hit by a rugby player from Premiership club Saracens. The Regulator of Cricket has launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident and said it examined a range of evidence before reaching its conclusion. “Having carefully examined all currently available information, the Cricket Regulator has determined that there is insufficient evidence to establish that a breach of regulation has occurred,” the body said in a statement. According to the regulator, investigators pursued “multiple lines of inquiry to collect and evaluate evidence” before deciding that the case did not warrant further action. The episode reignited the debate around the culture in England’s men’s set-up, particularly after the criticism that followed the team’s unsuccessful Ashes tour of Australia, where reports of excessive drinking and unprofessional behavior had attracted widespread attention. While the off-field issue was resolved, attention quickly returned to cricket. England and New Zealand enter the third and final Test with the series level at 1-1, setting up a decisive showdown at Trent Bridge.
