I Can't Get Over Staggering Stupidity Required To Do What Hales Has Done

You used to be able to spot the trouble makers in cricket teams from more than 22 yards.

Their bold insouciance and rebel nature wouldn’t be restricted to social occasions, but on show most of the time. That is why Alex Hales puzzles me. As a serial offender he does not fit the profile.

As a player, Hales is a destructive batsman who practises hard. On the field and around it he seems quiet, contained, a team member just getting on with his job. He certainly isn’t boisterous and noisy like some of his England colleagues, those who crave to be the centre of action and attention.

But the destruction he visits upon bowlers when at the crease also appears to be something he turns on himself from time to time. Why else would he break the rules, and the law of the land, as assuredly as he has done these past 18 months and not make the necessary adjustments to conform?

To fail one drugs test is serious enough but to fail a second one, while still being on ‘probation’ for a brawl outside a Bristol nightclub with Ben Stokes, beggars belief at the thought processes, or lack of, going through his brain.

Team games like cricket, where participants are corralled together for long periods, especially on tour, require co-operation and harmony on and off the field. I’m all for players being allowed to let off steam with a good night out, but not if they don’t know how to do it without endangering themselves or the public. Perhaps they need a social coach as well as a batting and bowling one.