Mystery as England star Hales drops out
Alex Hales was under a World Cup cloud last night after taking an indefinite break from cricket for ‘personal reasons’. Hales pulled out of Nottinghamshire’s Royal london Cup game against lancashire yesterday and his county later confirmed that no timetable had been set for his return to the game.
The news comes just a week before england are due to gather in Cardiff for a three-day training camp and is a concern at the start of such a huge year and with england’s first World Cup action just over a month away.
It is the latest setback for the troubled Hales, who earlier this year was banned for six white-ball games — four of them suspended — and fined £17,500 by the eCB for his part in the infamous brawl in Bristol that left Ben stokes facing criminal charges.
and only last month Hales was exposed by a newspaper for allegedly cheating on his long-term girlfriend during england’s tour of the Caribbean.
eoin Morgan’s 50-over side drew 2-2 against West Indies and then won the Twenty20 series 3-0.
a source close to Hales last night said they were confident he would still be able to join Morgan and
company in Wales next saturday, but the news seemed to take england by surprise yesterday with management unclear as to what Hales’ new problem was.
The fact he felt the need to pull out of action represents a worry even though Hales is no longer part of england’s first-choice World Cup side.
Hales lost his place at the top of the order to Jason Roy in the aftermath of the ugly scenes in Bristol when he was out late with stokes.
But the 30-year- old remains an important member of england’s white-ball squad and is guaranteed a place as the spare batsman in their final World Cup 15, having been named in their preliminary party last week. The final squad will be announced on May 22, eight days before the tournament begins.
Hales admitted in a recent interview that ‘sometimes I make mediocre decisions but I don’t want to make them anymore’ and it can only be hoped that his new issue is not serious enough to impact on Hales or england’s World Cup plans.