Ben Stokes apologized to his teammates before returning from the test

Ben Stokes has apologized to his teammates ahead of his return as England captain for the third Test against New Zealand at Trent Bridge.

Stokes and fast bowler Gus Atkinson have been ruled out for the second Test. It ended with a defeat of 253A pending investigation into the team’s breach of midnight curfew and an incident in a London nightclub during England’s series opener.

Both players have been called up to the XI for the third Test starting on Thursday Blameless “violent behavior” By Cricket Controller.

A disciplinary hearing by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) found that they had “breached their contractual obligations” and were given a written warning.

Joe Root led the side in Stokes’ absence, while Sonny Baker, Jordan Cox and James Rew made their debuts in a changed team.

“That was one of the first things I had to do as captain,” Stokes said when asked if he had apologized to his teammates.

“You look at a situation and it affects more than just myself. It affects John, it affects the team, it affects people outside of the game environment.

“There’s no doubt it affected the lads making their debut. It should have been all about them but unfortunately circumstances were out of their control and they had a big day to make their debut for England in Test cricket.

“To me, it’s stupid and naive not to acknowledge that and not do that. And that’s what you have to do as someone who has a responsibility to be a leader in a team.

“Everything is fine and well, everything is fine and good, but you also need to take responsibility for things. If it’s you, you have to be a big person and a big person to take that responsibility, you have to be big enough to take that on your shoulders, you have to look everyone in the eye and apologize how you should apologize. That’s what I did.”