Ben Stokes's arrest - A distraction England could have done without

Ben Stokes is a box office player. A once in a generation cricketer, he could well be England's greatest ever all-rounder. With bat and ball, he oozes aggression and it is that fiery nature which makes him the high calibre player he is. If it is channelled in the right fashion, England have a world beater at their disposal. If it isn't, they have a liability.

In an interview with The Times newspaper on Saturday, Stokes admitted that aggression is part of his game but that he would never punch anyone in the heat of the moment. Two days later, in the early hours of Monday morning following a session in a Birstol nightclub, Stokes is alleged to have done just that. He was arrested, spent the night in jail and was subsequently released pending police investigations.

This is, we should not forget, England's Test vice-captain and their most important player. It comes a matter of weeks before the squad depart to Australia for a gruelling Ashes trip. It is the worst possible timing.

Yet we should be careful to jump to conclusions about this incident. Was Stokes provoked? Was he reacting in self-defence? The facts of the case are not yet public but it would not be the first time a well-paid sportsman on a night out has been set upon by another member of the public in the hope of eliciting some kind of reaction. What is not in doubt, given the ECB's statement yesterday, is that Stokes reacted.

Andrew Strauss, Director, England Cricket, confirmed on Wednesday (September 27) that Stokes had suffered a minor fracture of the little finger on his right hand but it is expected, at this stage and pending further tests, the all-rounder will be available for the first Test match in Brisbane. Strauss would not be drawn, however, on whether he would make the first warm-up match against a Western Australian XI on November 4th.

There is of course the possibility that Stokes will be unavailable because he has to be in the UK to face any resultant charges which come from the police investigation. "All we can do at this moment is deal with what we know," Strauss said. "We have no idea how things are going to develop from a police perspective and it would be wrong for us to second guess that in any way. We are judging our Ashes selection on that basis."

Strauss confirmed that Stokes remains England Test vice-captain pending the outcome of any disciplinary process which is currently ongoing. Strauss doesn't expect that process to be resolved before the end of the ODI series against Windies so it will likely be a number of days before any decision is made. He would not be drawn on who else might be subject to the disciplinary process but James Anderson, Jake Ball and Alex Hales could be impacted after joining Stokes on his night out.

"I don't think right now is the time to comment on what may or may not happen from a disciplinary point of view. At the moment, what I'm doing is speaking to the players individually to get their accounts of what went on on Sunday night. There is a disciplinary protocol that is in place as part of their conditions of employment. We need to follow that for all players who may be subject to disciplinary proceedings, including Ben."

Earlier this summer, Stokes was warned about his behaviour following a late night out drinking during the Old Trafford Test against South Africa. There are also the well publicised previous misdemeanours: sent home from a Lions tour in 2013 because of too many late nights; a fine for speeding last year and warning that he could go to prison if caught again; punching a locker in 2014 during a one-day series in the Caribbean and breaking his hand.

Whatever the results of the disciplinary process, the ECB may consider sending Stokes on an anger management course to help him curb these aggressive tendencies. Some of the instances have involved drink, others have not, but he would be wise to curb that part of his lifestyle too and it is understood his agent, Neil Fairbrother, has warned him a number of times about this. A player of his profile simply has to do better.

An Australian tour is the ultimate test for an England cricketer as much as for the off-field pressures as the on-field play. Stokes will be baited by the crowds when he is on the field. He will be subject to comments and yes, perhaps even abuse, in hotels, restaurants, bars through Australia. He will have to deal with it for the entire three month tour. How will he react? He may brush it off the first or second time. But what about the twentieth or thirtieth time?

Given this latest incident, nobody quite knows how Stokes will respond. That will worry the ECB more than anything.

It could lead England to consider curfews - something that is not currently in place - and the level of their security for the Ashes tour. "It's my view - and I think it's a view shared by Trevor Bayliss - that the right way to operate a team environment is by treating people like adults and by giving players personal responsibility on and off the pitch," said Strauss. "That's how we get the best results on the pitch and how we ensure we have a harmonious environment off the pitch that helps performance.

"When things like this happen, it's always a moment to step back and [ask] 'Do we do everything exactly right?' We'll be looking at that over the coming days. Instinctively, I still that philosophy is the right way to go but it is important that players understand their responsibilities as international cricketers and what potential damage can be done to the England team and the sport if we aren't seen to be good role models for the game."

Will this incident have any impact on the morale of the team? How is captain Joe Root, who is very close to Stokes, feeling about this incident so close to perhaps the biggest challenge of Root's own career? Stokes is a well liked member of England's squad so it is likely that this will be brushed under the carpet quickly. It may even have a galvanising effect on the squad, a sort of England against the world siege mentality. That can work for teams, too.

"We've experienced similar things in the past and you can go one of two ways," said Strauss. "It can bring people together or it can allow people to split off in to splinter groups. What I'm very encouraged by is how tight that team environment is at the moment and I'd be exceptionally hopeful they use this as an opportunity to galvanise things to focus their minds on what they need to achieve in Australia."

Whatever the circumstances of the incident, the timing is awful. It is a distraction that Root and England can do without. The Ashes squad, announced on Wednesday, looks short of proven Test match class and England will need all their energies focused on one thing: beating Australia. Stokes's indiscretion has meant they will be unlikely to do that.