Former England spinner Graeme Swann has questioned the English Cricket Board’s (ECB) decision to impose a midnight curfew on players, saying England captain Ben Stokes has become a victim of a culture more focused on monitoring players than allowing them to celebrate success.Stokes came under scrutiny after footage emerged of post-Test celebrations in a nightclub following England’s win over New Zealand at Lord’s. Stokes and teammate Gus Atkinson were involved in an incident that also involved Saracens academy rugby player Totoa Offa.Speaking to news agency PTI, Swan said he did not agree with the idea of a curfew.“My thoughts are very mixed on this matter. The fact that there is a curfew in place is…
I am a former player. You’ll never convince me that a curfew is a good thing. “It’s ridiculous that they did it in the first place,” Swan told PTI.Swan said the ECB seemed more concerned with optics than with the reality of the dressing room environment.“I understand why they’re doing it, because they’re trying to paint a good image for other people, in terms of PR. It doesn’t work. I think they, the ECB, will learn a lesson from that, which is that we should never have done that,” he said.
According to Swan, the ECB would have been better off discussing team culture with the players rather than imposing blanket restrictions.“We should have come out and sat down and actually talked about what we’re going to do as a culture and make sure we move forward.”“But just imposing a midnight curfew after winning a Test match, the day when you are not allowed to celebrate winning a Test match for your country is a dark day,” he said.Swann said he had no problem with Stokes celebrating the Test victory and believed the problem was with the rule itself.“I don’t think Ben Stokes did anything wrong here, other than breaking a rule that shouldn’t have been implemented in the first place.”He added that not enough facts were announced about the nightclub incident.He added, “I don’t know the story or what happened. No one knows the story. So I will not comment on that.”Returning to the issue of the curfew, Swan said:“As I say, he celebrated the win in the Test match. I have no problem with that at all. I have a big problem with the midnight curfew the team imposed after winning the Test.”The former cricketer said that professional cricketers should be trusted to act responsibly.“Before a test, it’s OK. You shouldn’t drink before or during a game. As a professional athlete, you shouldn’t do that.”
But that doesn’t need to be written down on a piece of paper for me.”Swann also compared the reaction to Stokes with how major sporting successes are often celebrated.“I think England are playing in the FIFA World Cup at the moment. If they win the FIFA World Cup and they hang around for 10 days, we’ll be celebrating as a country like you wouldn’t believe it.”With Stokes left out of England’s squad for the second Test against New Zealand, questions have been raised about his future in the game.
Swann said he hopes this does not mark the end of Stokes’ career.
“I don’t know. I hope this isn’t the end because he’s the best captain we’ve had since Andrew Strauss. Alastair Cook won’t like that. Sorry, Cookie.”The Northampton man compared it to previous incidents involving England players and suggested that public discourse had become increasingly toxic.“This is what happened to Ben Duckett in the winter (during the Ashes concert in Australia). Who recorded it and sent it? This is supposed to be England fans and they will protest. They will say: ‘Oh, we’re doing it because we love our country’. No, they’re doing it to try to make money.”“The culture we live in right now is that we try desperately to film someone doing it and knock them down and put it in the papers. I think it’s a sad time we’re living in. I really do.”