Ben Stokes England will not play the second Test against New Zealand at the Oval after the nightclub incident in London, with Root leading the team as interim captain.Stokes has been left out of the squad along with fast bowler Gus Atkinson after the pair violated the team’s midnight curfew earlier on Monday.The two players were in a nightclub when a member of England’s security staff was hit by Saracens rugby player Totowa Awa.Although Harry Brook is England’s vice-captain, he has not been selected to lead the team for this match.Brooke was involved in an incident last year when he was punched by a bouncer outside a nightclub in Wellington on the eve of an ODI against New Zealand.Hence, Root will return to the captaincy for the first time after stepping down in 2022. The former captain led England in a record 64 Test matches between 2017 and 2022.The 35-year-old is England’s highest run-scorer in Test cricket. After one win in England’s 17 Test matches, he resigned as captain and was replaced by Stokes.England have also included fast bowler Jofra Archer and batsman Jordan Cox in the squad that won the first Test against New Zealand by 115 runs at Lord’s.The second Test against New Zealand will start from June 17 at The Oval.Meanwhile, some reports have suggested that England’s Ben Stokes could retire from cricket following a nightclub row involving him and teammate Gus Atkinson.The development comes after the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) launched an investigation into the Stokes and Atkinson incident at a nightclub in the early hours of Monday, hours after England’s 115-run win over New Zealand in the first Test at Lord’s.
