Warner made to pay for bar brawl
Australia batsman David Warner was dropped for the country’s Champions Trophy match against New Zealand on Wednesday, Cricket Australia said, after a bar-room attack on England’s Joe Root.
Cricket Australia said the player had been reported for breaching its code of conduct relating to “unbecoming behaviour” after a “physical altercation” with an unnamed player after the two teams’ Champions Trophy on Sunday. England captain Alastair Cook later confirmed the identity of the player involved as Yorkshire batsman Root.
“Joe seems fine,” Cook told a news conference ahead of England’s next match against Sri Lanka at The Oval on Thursday, adding that he was disappointed by the incident. “It’s unfortunate this has happened and he wants to put it behind him. We have investigated the matter, we believe we have not done anything wrong.”
Cook added: “He (Root) seems fine. He is training well. He just wants to get the matter buried. He is an excellent young man.
“It was not an official ICC function. I was not there, so I am also hearing it second hand. But a couple of our players were there.”
Britain’s Sky Sports News television quoted the manager of the Australian theme bar Walkabout in Birmingham’s entertainment district, where the incident took place, as saying that players from both sides were there between the 1:30 am (0030 GMT) and 2:30 am.
There was a “small altercation” but all the players got on well afterwards and Warner picked up the bar tab, he added. The BBC reported that Warner walked over from a VIP area and swung a punch at Root, who took a glancing blow to the chin. Clint McKay, one of several other Australian players in the bar, then led Warner away, it added.
Warner contacted Root on Sunday to apologise and that the England batsman accepted the apology, the broadcaster said.
The England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement that Warner “initiated an unprovoked physical attack” after the team’s 48-run victory at Edgbaston on Saturday.
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