England captain Joe Root rules out team curfew for Pakistan Tests

KARACHI: Returning England captain Joe Root has revealed that there would be no team curfew during their three-match home Test series against Pakistan, scheduled to get underway on August 19.

Root, who has previously captained England in Tests from 2017 to 2022, was handed back the leadership role following enterprising all-rounder Ben Stokes's retirement from international cricket last month.

Stokes's shock retirement came just days after he, alongside pacer Gus Atkinson, missed the second Test of their recent home series against New Zealand as they were being probed over allegedly breaking the team's curfew and an altercation with Saracens Rugby player Totoa Auvaa following the opening fixture.

Although the duo was later cleared by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), it bolstered the scrutiny surrounding the Three Lions' dressing room culture over the past year under the leadership of captain Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum, who also stepped down after the New Zealand series and was subsequently replaced by Stephen Fleming.

With England now preparing for a fresh start under the leadership of Root, who, however, will be without Fleming for the home series against Pakistan, the batting stalwart ruled out the need to impose a team curfew and instead stressed that the players should be trusted as "grown adults" to make wise decisions off the field.

"There's not going to be a curfew. I don't think this needs to be a big deal, to be honest," Root said during a podcast, published on Wednesday.

"My view is that if players are expected to take responsibility on the field, they should be trusted as grown adults to make good decisions off it as well.

"That's something we, as a team, have to manage properly and police ourselves, alongside Stephen Fleming."