STUDENT SHOUT: Players should be role models on and off the field

I am a passionate cricket fan and have enjoyed both playing and watching the sport since I was about 10.

I played for my local club, Castle Hill, in Kent, and I fondly remember training every Friday night, and nets with my dad most weekends.

One of my favourite memories from that time is my team going unbeaten for a whole season.

I have been lucky to experience quite a few England test matches at Lords, the home of cricket.

It’s amazing to see the game live and the atmosphere is always brilliant.

But the situations some of England’s current crop of players have found themselves in off the field has saddened me.

As much as I love supporting the England cricket team I think incidents that are making headlines at the moment are causing us to be laughed at by the rest of the cricketing world.

What do I make of the alleged anti-social behaviour of cricket stars, Ben Stokes and Ben Duckett?

I totally agree with the feelings expressed by past England cricketers such as Michael Vaughan who said he feels certain players are behaving ‘like students’ .

I believe it’s simply not good enough as they are grown men and the team should not suffer because of their actions.

Stokes and Duckett are supposed to be role models for young cricketers.

It’s even more embarrassing for Stokes, considering he is vice captain of his country.

The problem with players getting into trouble – whether it be getting into a drunken fight or pouring a pint of beer over another team member’s head – is not only that it is a distraction to the team’s preparation for matches.

It also gives the Australians freedom to get stuck into us, especially when it comes to the sledging on the field.