Brydon Carse among the wickets for Durham amid investigations
The 31-year-old was stood down by England for this week’s second Rothesay Test against Pakistan at Lord’s, but was available for his county.
Brydon Carse put his recent troubles to one side with a wicket-taking return for Durham as investigations continued into the late-night incident that saw him removed from England’s Test squad.
Carse found himself handcuffed by police outside a Derby nightclub in the early hours of Sunday morning under suspicion of being drunk and disorderly. He was briefly arrested then de-arrested after agreeing to depart.
Once the independent Cricket Regulator confirmed it was opening a probe into the issue, the 31-year-old was stood down by England for this week’s second Rothesay Test against Pakistan at Lord’s.
He was nevertheless available for county duty and enjoyed a perfect start on Thursday morning at Chester-le-Street, striking in his first over of the day against Gloucestershire and adding a second breakthrough in his initial new-ball spell of two for 33.
Carse’s sixth ball of the match knocked out Joe Phillips’ middle stump and he also clean bowled Miles Hammond.
Durham’s attack at the Banks Home Riverside also included fellow England seamer Matthew Potts, and former England skipper Ben Stokes, who also appeared in the video clip which emerged over the weekend showing Carse being detained by officers. There is no suggestion either Stokes or Potts were involved in anything untoward.
Derbyshire Police confirmed on Wednesday that they were were looking into “allegations of assault”.
In an updated statement issued on Wednesday evening, Derbyshire Police said: “We are investigating allegations of assault in Derby city centre. No arrests have yet been made and the investigation is ongoing.”
Further details are unknown, with no clarity over what part – if any – Carse had in the alleged assault. The England and Wales Cricket Board declined to comment when contacted by the Press Association.
An initial statement from the force, released after a video clip of Carse apparently being detained by officers in the street, had said: “A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly in Derby city centre on Saturday night. However the man was de-arrested shortly afterwards having agreed to leave the area.”
Reacting to the incident, Stokes’ replacement as Test skipper Joe Root spoke angrily about the latest in a growing line of alcohol-related issues which have swamped the team.
Root, who made a point of abolishing the midnight curfew which played a partial role in Stokes’ exit following another controversial night out earlier this summer, said: “If I’m being brutally honest I’m really hacked off.
“I’ve spoken to Brydon and when I first found out my first concern was him as a person. I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn in saying he’s very upset, very apologetic and understands his actions. I’m sure when he gets his chance, he will say that himself.
“But it’s not the isolated incident itself, it’s the fact we continuously keep making stupid mistakes away from the game and it’s detracting from what we are doing on the field.”