BAIRSTOW IN ASHES STORM
But England keeper denies head-butting Australian rival
England’s ashes tour went from bad to worse last night when Jonny Bairstow was accused of physical violence.
Bairstow is said to have head-butted australia debutant Cameron Bancroft during a night out in Perth at the start of this tour, at a time England were still reeling from the arrest and suspension of Ben stokes.
But England, on the brink of a crushing first Test defeat going into today’s final day in Brisbane, were adamant that wicketkeeper Bairstow had done little wrong and that the accusations had been exaggerated.
The latest explosive development came to light at the end of the fourth day of the first Test, after Bairstow had been sledged aggressively by australia — in particular david Warner and Peter Handscomb — when he batted at the gabba.
The comments, which centred on the pair telling Bairstow ‘we know what you did to our mate in Perth’ might have contributed towards a careless stroke from one of England’s best batsmen as they crashed to near defeat.
Warner, who is supposed to have cleaned up his act after his own altercation with Joe Root in a Birmingham bar led to him being suspended four years ago, is clearly not averse to carrying on sledging.
The comments were picked up by the stump microphone and later reported by australia’s Fox television, leading to an investigation by England at the close. Sportsmail understands Bairstow told the management, including team director andrew strauss, that he had became involved in light-hearted joshing with Bancroft during a gathering of England and Western australia players.
It seems certain that there was physical contact between the pair but sources close to Bairstow said there was no aggression involved and that Bancroft took no offence at what took place.
It is understood that the ECB’s highly respected security advisor Reg dickason, on red alert after the punch-up outside a Bristol bar in september that led to stokes being accused of causing actual bodily harm, was at the avenue bar in Perth with the players and was happy that no bad behaviour had occurred.
The ECB released a statement last night after discussions with Bairstow in which they came close to exonerating the player, while adding that they will conclude investigations after the first Test.
‘There has been no report of any incident from the venue, security or police and there was no injury reported,’ said the ECB statement. ‘Following an initial conversation with Jonny Bairstow we understand the context and will follow up with England players and management after the Brisbane Test.’
The incident happened on the last night of England’s week-long stay in Perth at the start of this tour, which culminated in a drawn two-day practice match against a Western australian XI.
Bancroft, who did not play in the match, was at that stage just a fringe contender for the australia team and joined some of his state team-mates along with a large number of England players at the avenue bar.
a team insider who was at the club told Sportsmail last night: ‘Jonny and Cameron were drinking together and Jonny bought him a drink. When he handed it to him, their heads touched and they carried on drinking together. It’s all hype.’
another source said: ‘Jonny is a rugby man and part of their culture is to bump heads if someone buys them a drink. Very odd, I know, but nothing malicious at all. They carried on drinking with each other.’
and a cricketer not involved in the England set-up, but who is in australia playing this winter, said: ‘I was there that night. There was no aggression. The suggestion of a head-butt is complete b ******* .’
But what will concern England is that the incident, seized upon gleefully by the australian media, will lead to more accusations of a drinking culture within the team as epitomised by the ugly incident involving stokes.
Bairstow was indeed fined by the ECB in the fall-out of the stokes affair, along with liam Plunkett and Jake Ball, for being out late — but doing nothing wrong — on the same night that stokes got involved in a serious altercation.
The players compiled a code of conduct at the start of this tour in an attempt to avoid any repeat of the Bristol incident that has cast such a cloud over this tour.
at the same time, management were determined to carry on treating the players as adults. There is an acceptance within the ECB that they cannot keep the players confined to hotel rooms on tours that last for weeks on end, but the last thing they needed were more accusations that one of their players has done something wrong.
Bairstow, innocent or not, has poured fuel on the fire.
There is no doubt that this incident would never have been seen as a problem had stokes not re-written the rules by becoming embroiled in a violent incident at the Embargo bar after a one-day international in Bristol.
Indeed, it is understood that Bancroft, who made his first Test half-century at the gabba, did not want the incident to come to light and has no issue with Bairstow, who is said to have apologised for any misunderstanding.
England were clearly inclined to give Bairstow, who has received enormous praise and respect after the release of his book
A Clear Blue Sky, the benefit of the doubt and sensed australian mischief at work.
They hope this will prove a storm in a teacup and that England and Bairstow will be able to carry on with the business of trying to salvage their tour in the second Test in adelaide.
But clearly, even with an australian like Handscomb, who is a friend and a former team-mate of Bairstow, the gloves are off.