"We want cricket to grow for kids, and for families to come and watch - through county cricket all the way up to international cricket, the individual needs to be responsible for his behaviour."
Sunday 10 December 2017 15:43, UK
Moeen Ali admits England's "off-field behaviour needs to improve" as they risk alienating younger generations of cricket fans.
Ben Duckett has been provisionally suspended by the ECB after reportedly pouring a drink over James Anderson on Thursday night in Perth, at the same bar where Jonny Bairstow delivered a "headbutt" to Australia opener Cameron Bancroft at the start of the tour.
Ben Stokes is also awaiting news on whether he will be charged following his arrest on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm following an episode outside a Bristol nightclub in September.
Stokes has been named in the ODI squad to face Australia in January, but the ECB says his participation "remains subject to any relevant legal or disciplinary developments."
"We all know the off-field behaviour needs to improve," said Ali after captaining England in a two-day warm-up match in Perth, a game Duckett was due to play in. "We're all grown men and should know how to behave.
"We want cricket to grow for kids, and for families to come and watch - through county cricket all the way up to international cricket, the individual needs to be responsible for his behaviour.
"I think it's really important we inspire the younger generation to take up the game. It could turn them away and that's not what we want.
"It's not always easy - the guys are on tour for a long time and feel like they want to go out but we have to behave ourselves. Obviously it's a shame these things happen, maybe the culture needs to change now."
Asked if the message is getting through, Moeen, who does not drink as part of his Muslim faith, said: "Yes, slowly but surely. As cricketers and professionals, the scrutiny that is on us, we have to be careful.
"It's not as bad as people make out, but these days people make small things into big things.
"We have team gatherings, and I don't drink and I still enjoy myself as much as anyone else - just without the hangover the next day,"
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