Michael Vaughan has backed Ben Stokes to retain the England captaincy despite being investigated for breaking the team’s curfew.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced it was looking into Stokes’ involvement in a nightclub incident on Monday morning following England’s win in the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s.
England team-mate Gus Atkinson and Saracens rugby player Totoa Auvaa were also involved.
Media reports on Tuesday suggested Stokes may resign as Test skipper.
The second Test against New Zealand at the Oval gets under way in a week’s time.
But former England captain Vaughan said Stokes had sufficient “credit in the bank” to avoid being sacked.
“Yes, Ben Stokes broke a curfew,” Vaughan wrote in the Daily Telegraph.
“Yes, he made a mistake. But is that a sacking offense as England’s Test captain? I do not think so.
“Stokes has a lot of credit in the bank for all he has done for England as captain and all-rounder. There is no way that those making the big decisions at the England and Wales Cricket Board have the same credit in the bank.
“I do not see how you can tell Stokes he is not captain anymore just for going over the curfew by a couple of hours after a win.”
He added: “A short suspension would be fine, but this is not a big enough incident over which to lose the captaincy.”
It is the latest controversy concerning the England team after the tour of Australia where the side faced allegations of a drinking culture during a 4-1 Ashes series loss.
A physical confrontation with Auvaa is understood to have led to a member of ECB security staff being struck.
If Stokes is stripped of the captaincy, vice-captain Harry Brook — already the skipper of England’s white-ball teams — could lead the hosts next week.
Brook was fined and censured for late-night drinking and clashing with a nightclub bouncer before captaining England in a one-day international in Wellington in October — an incident that led to the midnight curfew.
Published on June 10, 2026
