Joe Root admits he was ‘hacked off’ by nightclub arrest of Brydon Carse as England stars ‘keep making stupid mistakes’ – and reveals bowler was ‘very upset and apologetic’

Joe Root has said he is ‘hacked off’ by Brydon Carse’s arrest in Derby on Saturday night, and frustrated that England’s cricketers ‘keep making stupid mistakes away from the game’.

Carse, who was handcuffed by police for being drunk and disorderly outside a nightclub after celebrating Durham’s win over Derbyshire in the County Championship, has since apologised to Root and – according to the captain – ‘understands his actions’.

But Root could not hide his irritation about having to address another alcohol-related incident only two days before the start of the crucial second Test against Pakistan at Lord’s.

‘If I’m being brutally honest, I’m really hacked off,’ he said. ‘I’m really disappointed that, after last week’s performance at Headingley, we’re sat here talking about something that is not related to it at all. 

‘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.

‘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.’

Carse, who was part of England’s 16-man squad for the first two Tests, will miss the game at Lord’s while the Cricket Regulator investigate the events that led to his arrest, swiftly followed by his ‘de-arrest’, outside Molly Malone’s Irish Tavern.

And Root urged his team to use the incident to put a raft of adverse headlines behind them – from Harry Brook’s set-to with a bouncer in Wellington, to Ben Duckett’s misadventure in Noosa, via Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson’s late-night drink in Chelsea’s Rex Rooms.

Today at Lord’s ahead of the second Test, Joe Root admitted he was ‘hacked off’ 

‘Clearly we are not portraying ourselves how we want to, and I think we have an opportunity to build a culture that is very strong, that we can be proud of, that is player-driven,’ said Root. 

‘Of course, that isn’t going to happen overnight. In many ways, we are going to have to earn a lot of trust back. It’s something we are going to have to live and breathe, consistently.

‘I’ve made it very clear to the players what is expected of them, how we want to conduct ourselves, and over time we’ve got to show people what I see on a day-to-day basis in the dressing-room – the characters we have, and how much they care about playing for England, and not having isolated incidents be how we are seen as a group of players.

‘I’m not trying to sit here and ask people to be saints. Everyone’s going to make mistakes at the odd time. But it’s understanding where we currently sit and what’s expected of England players.

‘We’ve had a very robust discussion, and I think there’s real clarity there. I can understand why we are viewed in a certain way at the moment. We have a responsibility and opportunity to change that.’

Asked whether the players had to be more careful about being goaded by members of the public, Root replied: ‘I just think if we don’t put ourselves in certain situations, it’s not something we have to worry about.’