By Admin 
After the nightclub controversy, the England Cricket Board has taken major action against Test captain Ben Stokes and expelled him from the team. Joe Root has been given the captaincy in his place. The England Cricket Board released the squad for the second Test against New Zealand to be played from June 17. In the same release, it was said that Stokes and his fellow fast bowler Gus Atkinson are not available for selection in view of the ongoing investigation in the nightclub case.
It was further told in the release that fast bowler Joffra Archer and batsman Jordan Cox have been added to the squad. The second red ball match will be held at London’s Kennington Oval.
Joe Root will lead the team as Interim Captain at the Kia Oval.
Click below for our 15-player squad for the 2nd Test 📝
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 10, 2026
Ben Stokes’ nightclub controversy
The first match of the ongoing three-match Test series between England and New Zealand was played at Lord’s in London. Host England won the match by 115 runs. To celebrate the victory, Stokes and Atkinson reached a nightclub. With this, Stokes broke the rules of ‘team curfew’ made by the England Board. It was told that Stokes drank too much alcohol.
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After this, Stokes and Atkinson had an argument with a rugby player in the club. This argument turned into a fight. CCTV video of the dispute also surfaced. Now the England Board has taken cognizance of the matter and started action.
England’s squad for the second test against New Zealand
Joe Root (captain), Rehan Ahmed, Joffra Archer, Sony Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethel, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Matthew Fisher, Emilio Gay, James Reve, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith (wk), Josh Tongue.
Also read: England’s Harry Brook becomes number 1 Test batsman, only two Indians in top-10; Know the latest updates