BAYLISS: STOKES HAS LEARNED HIS LESSON

TREVOR Bayliss has pleaded with cricket’s disciplinary commission to clear Ben Stokes to play for England in the West Indies, saying “he has learned his lesson”.

The England coach wants the threeman panel, who will decide next week whether Stokes “brought the game into disrepute” on his infamous night out in Bristol last year, to go easy on the player.

Stokes was found not guilty of affray ahead of a Sri Lanka tour where he excelled in England’s 3-0 victory, but could be suspended or fined for his behaviour.

“I hope he’s available for our next tour and I certainly think he’s learnt a lesson since that time,” said Bayliss. “The way he has conducted himself since he has come back into the fold has been exemplary.”

Stokes returned to something near his best with bat, ball and in the field in Sri Lanka and it is clear he is still held in the highest regard by team-mates and coaches. Bayliss is a big fan of Stokes and gave the example of an incident at the end of the third day of the final Test to demonstrate the value of his talisman to the side.

“He’s a mad man,” laughed Bayliss. “To see him bowl a ball and then chase it all the way to the mid-on boundary to save runs. That’s commitment. How many blokes would you see in the world do that off their own bowling? No one. And that just says a lot.

“I got into the lift after dinner that night and he was just getting out. He’d just come back from the gym. That’s how hard he works and he deserves everything he gets from the game. For me he’s our first pick.

“You can throw the ball to him, you can put him in any situation with the bat, you can put him where the ball is going in the field. His averages may not be the greatest in each of his positions but you add those three disciplines together and it adds up to one hell of a player. The team definitely take their lead from him.”

England will pick their squad for three Tests in the Caribbean in the new year after the results of the disciplinary hearing into the behaviour of Stokes and Hales are known on December 7.

And, as long as Stokes is available, there will be little change to a winning squad, with the only possible addition being Jason Roy – who, according to Bayliss, “has been spoken about and is getting close” – in place of Joe Denly.

But it is clear Keaton Jennings and Rory Burns still have work to do to establish themselves as openers ahead of next year’s Ashes. When Bayliss was asked if they had nailed down their positions he said “probably not”.

“They’ve shown glimpses of what they can do,” the Australian said. “But they still have hard work ahead. I think they’ve done enough to warrant selection in the next squad but they will want to score more runs.” Meanwhile, the search for a replacement for Andrew Strauss as England team director has been narrowed to four candidates. Ashley Giles and Andy Flower have been joined by Leicestershire chief executive Wasim Khan and Australian Tom Moody. | Daily Mail