Stokes dropped for New Zealand Test after curfew breach, Root to lead

Ben Stokes was left out of England’s squad for the second Test against New Zealand after a breach of team protocols, and Joe Root was brought back into the captaincy picture as the ECB moved to steady the side. Stokes and Gus Atkinson were not made available for selection for the Rothesay second Test at the Kia Oval, which begins on Wednesday 17 June, while the investigation continued.

The ECB said Stokes and Atkinson were present at a nightclub in the early hours of Monday morning after England’s win at Lord’s, where the first Test began on Thursday 4 June. The episode has turned into more than a selection call: it has become a test of the standards England want to enforce around a senior player-led team. James Shaw, an England security guard, needed stitches after a bouncer’s punch missed Atkinson, giving the affair a harder edge.

Root’s return carries obvious symbolism as well as practical value. The ECB’s squad announcement said, “Yorkshire batter Joe Root will lead the team as Interim Captain,” with vice-captain Harry Brook remaining in the squad but not taking over for this match. Root led England in 64 Tests between 2017 and 2022, both a national record and a sign of how quickly the team has circled back to a familiar figure when authority is needed.

That return matters because Root’s first spell ended under strain. He resigned as England Test captain in April 2022 after England had won only one of their previous 17 Tests, yet he has since re-established himself as one of the side’s most reliable batters under Stokes. His record of 27 wins remains the most by any England men’s Test captain, ahead of Michael Vaughan, Sir Alastair Cook and Sir Andrew Strauss.

The selection changes also widened beyond the leadership issue. England added Jofra Archer and Jordan Cox to the squad for the Oval Test, suggesting a reset that reaches into both pace and batting depth. Stokes had previously backed the return of a drinking curfew after earlier Ashes-tour problems, so his omission now points to a discipline framework that England are willing to enforce even when it disrupts the captaincy.

Stokes is also understood to be weighing his future, with retirement part of the conversation as he meets advisers in north-east England. However the long-term picture settles, England have made one point unmistakable before the second Test: standards now sit alongside talent, and Root’s interim return is the clearest sign yet that the team is prepared to reset around both.