Says STEVE HARMISON

ENGLAND legend Steve Harmison took a long, hard look at Ben Stokes’ nocturnal adventures and warned: “Minders shadowing cricketers on nights out is not the answer.”

Harmison (right) was Stokes’ team-mate at Durham and took 226 Test wickets as part of the “Fab Four” pace attack, who became Ashes heroes in 2005.

He feels English cricket’s whole off-the-field culture has been on trial for seven days in Bristol – as well as an all-rounder in the Ian Botham and Freddie Flintoff class.

Harmison, 39, warned that elite cricketers – who spend 250 nights a year away from home – cannot be expected to “live like monks”.

And he believes it is unrealistic to expect young sportsmen to stay cooped up in hotel rooms.

After Stokes was acquitted of affray, Harmison said: “I’m relieved for Ben and his family and I’m relieved for everyone connected with the England team that it’s over because this has been hanging over them for almost a year now.

“Regardless of who did what – and all the defendants were found not guilty – the England players had permission from the management to go out that night.

“What happens after that is always the land of the unknown, but Ben has missed a lot of cricket and I’m glad he’s back in the squad for the third Test against India.

“He’s a great kid, and there are things I could tell you about the goodness of Ben Stokes’ character that would leave you dumbstruck.

“I know him as the lad who dipped his hand in his own pocket to host a pro-celebrity game for the PCA (players’ union) in aid of the Cockermouth flood victims after Storm Desmond. I’ve not seen such a buzz around an England cricketer since Andrew Flintoff in his prime. “People say Ben should not have been out so late. But, unless you have been in an England dressing room and you have experienced the emotion that comes with a big win, you have no idea of the different ways players need to let off steam. “Some need a valve to release the tension – and telling them to be tucked up in bed with lights out before midnight is not the answer.

“And it’s the same with people who say they should have minders when they go out for a pint. If England cricketers need bodyguards or security around them when they venture out of their hotel, they shouldn’t be going out.

“But there’s only so much room service a man can take. If you settle for the cabin fever of four walls of a hotel room every night, you are probably storing up psychological problems for somewhere down the line.

“We are talking about high-profile sportsmen who spend more than 250 nights away from home in a year.

“They already live in a ‘bubble’ when playing for their country, which can be suffocating in the pressure and intensity of a Test series, so they have to find ways to unwind.

“Yes, international cricketers are well-paid and with all that comes a responsibility for your behaviour and the actions that you take.

“But I hope we don’t expect them to live like monks – we are talking about young athletes growing up.

“They are going to make mistakes and they will learn from them. These lads are just human beings, young men trying to understand how to live their lives.

“And, hopefully, future generations of young cricketers will be more aware of the pitfalls from now on.”