KARACHI: Former Australian cricketer and head coach Darren Lehmann has come out in support of the England men’s cricket team amid a drinking spree, insisting the visiting players were “really well behaved” during their time in Noosa.
England, who lost each of the first three matches of the blockbuster series and suffered an Ashes defeat in just 11 days, have come under scrutiny over their six-day stay in Noosa after their players were allegedly heavily drunk during the trip.
Controversy erupted when a video went viral on social media, in which Ben opened a document, got drunk, and couldn’t find his way back to the group hotel.
The video attracted widespread criticism from the cricket fraternity and eventually drew the attention of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), which announced it was launching an investigation into the claims.
“We are aware of the content circulating on social media,” the ECB said in a statement earlier this week.
“We have high expectations of behaviour, players are often under intense scrutiny, with established processes we follow when behavior falls short of expectations. We also support players who need help.
“We will not comment further at this stage until we have established the facts.”
Meanwhile, according to the latest development, the English players received an unlikely support during the controversy as Lehmann, who represented Australia in 27 Tests and 117 ODIs, claimed to be in Noosa at the time and assured them that they behaved well and had a good time with the locals.
He also dismissed allegations that they were heavily intoxicated, insisting the reports were “false”.
“I was in Noosa and it scares me. I’m about to get stuck in England. They didn’t play enough, their preparation (wasn’t good) before the first game of the series and I got all that. But I was actually there. They got along really well. They mixed with the locals and had a good time,” Lehmann told an Australian news website.
“The reports that they were blocking it were false. They were polite and happy to the people in Noosa, playing golf, playing football with the locals – all that sort of stuff,” he added.
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