Nottinghamshire Cricket Serving Suspension For "Off-Field Incident"

26 April 2019, 18:00 | Updated: 26 April 2019, 18:38

Nottinghamshire cricketer Alex Hales is serving a suspension following an off-field incident not related to cricket.

A report claimed that the 30-year-old had been sanctioned under the England and Wales Cricket Board's disciplinary policy for a second time.

A spokesman for Hales confirmed later the batsman had been suspended and added: "He will be joining the squad in preparation for next week's games and will be available for selection. Whilst the issue is not cricket related, Hales accepted that it was right that he was suspended.

"He is now fully focused on returning to cricket and is committed to working tirelessly for both Nottinghamshire and England throughout the summer. No further comment will be made on this issue."

Nottinghamshire issued a statement last week confirming Hales had "made himself unavailable for selection for personal reasons", and "no timetable has been set for his return to action".

As a consequence, Hales missed the start of the Royal London One-Day Cup campaign but had been selected in the England squad for the forthcoming series against Pakistan ahead of this summer's World Cup.

Hales will be involved with England's training camp in Cardiff this weekend.

Last year, Hales was suspended and fined by the ECB following his involvement with Ben Stokes in an incident outside a Bristol nightclub during September 2017. All-rounder Stokes was subsequently found not guilty of affray following a six-day trial at Bristol Crown Court.

In a statement to the Press Association an ECB spokesperson said: "We have a duty of confidentiality, therefore we are unable to provide any further comment."