Joe Root's first move as England Test captain? Scrapping the midnight curfew

The curfew, which forced the players to return to their hotels before midnight, was originally introduced after the winter Ashes series following a series of stories circulated over player behaviour. Harry Brook faced disciplinary action after he was involved in an altercation with a bouncer in a New Zealand nightclub in the early hours of the morning before captaining in England in an ODI.

While the curfew came into action for England's following white ball series in Sri Lanka, controversy emerged over whether all players had been informed of its enforcement. Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson were dropped for England's second Test of the summer at The Oval, after they stayed out past the midnight cut-off while celebrating winning the first Test at Lord's. Following that incident, it was alleged that not all players were aware the curfew was in place. 

Joe Root has ruled out a curfew under his England Test captaincy ❌ pic.twitter.com/rhRc8sI3HE

England managing director Rob Key speculated at the time that a total alcohol ban from the ECB could be considered. However, last month the ECB released new additional player behaviour guidelines specifying that players cannot appear under the influence of alcohol in public, and that they must inform team management if they are out of their hotel after 10pm.

Now, weeks after he was re-apointed as England Test captain, Root has scrapped the curfew altogether, and urged his players to act responsibly ahead of their three-match Test series against Pakistan at home, which is scheduled to commence on August 19 in Leeds. 

“There's not going to be a curfew,” said Root on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast.“I don't think this needs to be a big deal, to be honest. My view on curfews is that I don't think they work, and if you want guys to take responsibility on the field, they've got to feel like they can be grown adults and make good, strong decisions off it.” 

“We should be known for how we play cricket and what we do on the field. We should be on the back page of papers. Be adults, look after yourselves, look after each other. [We need to] create a good, strong culture where you know when the right time is to celebrate and enjoy a win or to have a sensible beer, but remember - you've got to play for England.”

The ECB later responded, stating that they welcomed the change proposed by the new duo of Root and Stephen Fleming. 

“We have a Test captain and coach, who are looking at how they set team standards and culture. As part of this, the curfew will no longer be in place. We will ensure all players have a clear understanding of expectations when they come together for the upcoming Test series.”

Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.