'Hasn't apologised for the chaos': Michael Atherton's verdict after Ben Stokes interview on the nightclub incident

‘Hasn’t apologised for the chaos’: Michael Atherton’s verdict after Ben Stokes interview on the nightclub incident originally appeared on Cricket News.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Michael Atherton points out that England Test captain Ben Stokes has not apologised for the nightclub incident after the Lord’s Test match.
• Stokes told Sky Sports that he felt “frustrated” and “disappointed” at how his actions impacted the England team’s dynamics.
• According to Atherton, Stokes seemed regretful of the negative impact on the team, but he didn’t admit to anything wrong with what had happened to him.

What did Ben Stokes say about the nightclub controversy?

According to Stokes, the past few weeks have been “frustrating” and “disappointing” after he and England teammate Gus Atkinson found themselves at the end of the disciplinary process following a night out during the Lord’s Test match.

Stokes explained that the problem escalated into a major distraction and affected the entire squad. Moreover, he also made it clear that he has already apologised to the stand-in captain Joe Root and his other teammates about the disturbance he has caused.

MORE:What really happened in Ben Stokes’ nightclub incident: Timeline of England captain’s controversy

Why Michael Atherton believes Ben Stokes stopped short of an apology

Analysing the interview he conducted on Sky Sports with Stokes, Atherton claimed that the issue could not have escalated so seriously without the involvement of a disciplinary procedure.

“All the chaos that we’ve talked about wouldn’t have happened had there not been a disciplinary process, had him (Stokes) and Gus Atkinson not found themselves subject to a disciplinary process,” Atherton remarked.

According to the former England captain, Stokes understood that he was responsible for the situation but refused to accept his mistakes.

“I think from what he said to me and to the press conference before, that he has taken ownership of the subsequent chaos that has enveloped the team.”

Whether he feels he did anything wrong is another matter. He’s not kind of apologised for that.

However, Atherton stressed that Stokes was well aware that his actions were harmful to England’s performance in the Test series against New Zealand, especially following the 253-run loss suffered by the substantially reshaped squad at The Oval.

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What Atherton believes Ben Stokes left unsaid in the interview

Although Atherton believed that Stokes was very open about the effect on the team, some elements of the disciplinary proceedings remained undefined.

According to Atherton, the interview had not covered all the issues that occurred after the Lord’s Test as well as the entire story behind the scenes.

“There was quite a lot of things that remained unsaid about the disciplinary process, about what happened over the 10 days subsequent to Lord’s.”

In his opinion, this suggests that Stokes is sorry for the repercussions rather than for his deeds.

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The Cricket News opinion: Can Ben Stokes move on from the nightclub controversy?

It must have been Stokes’ most clear attempt to respond to the nightclub scandal and its influence on the England team.

However, whether it would suffice is debatable, because, as Atherton put it, Stokes took the blame for everything that happened but did not apologise for the behaviour that led to the disciplinary procedure. At the same time, it remains to the interpretation of Stokes’ words.

For now, with Stokes and Atkinson both back in the squad, the attention will turn to the next third and deciding Test between England and New Zealand at Trent Bridge from June 25-29.

As for the series, it is finely poised at 1-1.

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