Harry Brook has admitted he is fortunate still to be England’s white-ball captain after clashing with a nightclub bouncer on the eve of a one-day international in New Zealand. The incident, which occurred before the third ODI in Wellington, led to a fine reportedly close to £30,000 and a formal disciplinary process by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
Brook reported the altercation to team management midway through the match, which England lost by two wickets, completing a 3-0 series defeat. In a statement, he apologised, saying his “behaviour was wrong and brought embarrassment to both myself and the England team”. Speaking in Colombo ahead of England’s ODI series against Sri Lanka, Brook admitted he did not consider resigning but thought the possibility of being sacked “was definitely playing through my mind”.
“I left that decision to the hierarchy and if they’d have sacked me from being captain, then I’d have been perfectly fine with it,” Brook said. “I think I’ve got a little bit of work to do to try to regain the trust of the players. I said sorry to them yesterday. It’s not acceptable as a player, but as a captain it’s really not acceptable.”
Brook said he was alone and “had one too many drinks” when the confrontation took place. He denied a drinking culture exists within the England team, but confirmed a midnight curfew has been put in place for the Sri Lanka tour. He also spoke to Test captain Ben Stokes, who was involved in a similar incident in 2017, saying Stokes “tried to help me through it”.
Despite the controversy, Brook remains captain as England seek to end a 10-match losing streak in ODIs away from home. He will reunite Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley at the top of the order for the first time since December 2023. Meanwhile, the ECB has appointed Troy Cooley as men’s elite fast bowling lead.
