Cricketer’s ‘naked selfie’ heaps more shame on England
Compromising photos allegedly of Alex Hales appear online in latest scandal after Stokes ‘brawl’
ENGLISH cricket was engulfed in more scandal last night as the fallout from a nightclub brawl continued to overshadow the team’s performances on the field.
With a police investigation ongoing into last weekend’s fracas in Bristol, the sport’s reputation was in danger of being further damaged, following the emergence of a series of allegedly lewd and inappropriate images on social media.
Ben Stokes and Alex Hales have both been suspended by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) until further notice, pending the outcome of a police investigation into allegations they punched and kicked two men during a brawl in the early hours of Monday after the team’s one day win over the West Indies. The man punched to the floor by Stokes has been identified as Ryan Hale, a former soldier who served in Afghanistan.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph last night, Mr Hale’s mother Angela, said her son was “not an aggressive type”. Mrs Hale, 53, who lives with her 26-year-old son in Westbury-on-trym, added: “He is not OK and it is not something that happens on a daily basis.” She said that her son had served with The Rifles during the Afghanistan war. Meanwhile, Hales, the Nottinghamshire batsman, also appeared to be at the centre of a smear campaign, after allegedly compromising photographs appeared online yesterday.
One of the images showed the player posing in a naked selfie, but sources close to Hales insisted it was taken more than five years ago before he played for England. It was not known who circulated the image, but sources said a series of other pictures also purporting to feature him or be taken by him, were hoaxes. In one, a semi-naked girl could be seen wearing a cricket shirt, with Hales’s name across the back. Sources close to the player said the shirt could have been bought from any sports store, or online, and the image had nothing to do with the player.
Stokes has also been accused of mocking the model Katie Price’s disabled son Harvey in a video leaked online.
Hales is expected to be questioned under caution next week by Avon and Somerset Police over allegations he kicked a man during a brawl outside the Mbargo nightclub in Bristol.
The incident took place at 2.30am on Monday and a video showing the alleged brawl has led to wider questions about the drinking culture surrounding the England cricket team.
The ECB will be keeping a close eye on activities off the pitch this weekend, with one England player due to have a stag party in Amsterdam and another getting married.
Joe Root, the England captain and Stuart Broad, a fellow international, were both due to attend team-mate Jos Buttler’s stag do in the Dutch city, but decided to cancel after Andrew Strauss, England’s director of cricket, warned the players about public behaviour.
‘Andrew Strauss read them the riot act’