Allegations that England’s Jonny Bairstow “headbutted” Australia batsman Cameron Bancroft in a Perth bar have sparked a media scramble - but Bancroft today laughed off the incident.
Bairstow is said the have “made contact” with the side of Bancroft’s head after members of the England squad bumped into players from the Western Australia squad by chance at The Avenue bar last month, during the early weeks of the Ashes campaign.
Speaking to press following the first Ashes Test in Brisbane yesterday, England director of cricket Andrew Strauss said that the story had been “blown out of all proportion” and that there was “no malice” intended by Bairstow, ESPN reports.
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A spokesperson said that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was made aware of the allegations, but that “no report of any incident” had been made from the venue, security or police.
So what really happened on that October night in Perth? Bancroft was asked that exact question at the post-match press conference following today’s Gabba Test.
And his answers not only played down the allegations but left Australia captain Steve Smith in stitches.
“I got into a very amicable conversation with Jonny, he just greeted me with a headbutt,” said Bancroft.
“I was expecting a handshake. It wasn’t the greeting I’d expected. We continued on having a very good conversation. At the time he said sorry. For me, personally, it was just really weird. It was so random and I didn’t really expect it.
“A handshake or hug would have been something more I would have expected. I just took it as, ‘He says hello to people very differently to others.’”
Here we look at how the story broke - and how the cricket world reacted on Twitter.
Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph led with the story on its back page.
ESPNcricinfo’s story on the incident.
ECB investigating the incident, says Sky News Australia.
“There was no intent of malice,” says Bairstow.
England coach Trevor Bayliss warns his players.
“They carried on drinking together,” reports the BBC.
Bancroft’s press conference debut is praised.
“Bairstow-Bancroft-Butthead brouhaha.”
Carrying on with the alliteration theme.
Cricket pundits Adam Gilchrist and Michael Vaughan have the final word…
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