Sawt Falasteen - England coach McCullum 'worried' about Stokes after curfew incident

Stokes will miss the clash at the Oval after breaching a midnight curfew while celebrating England's win over the Black Caps in the first Test at Lord's.

The all-rounder and his England team-mate Gus Atkinson became embroiled in an incident involving Saracens rugby player Totoa Auvaa, prompting an internal investigation by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

There were suggestions that Stokes would resign or even retire in the immediate aftermath.

But the 35-year-old's future remains shrouded in mystery ahead of the start of the second Test on Wednesday.

Speaking on Monday, a sombre McCullum said he experienced a range of emotions from anger to concern when he learnt of Stokes' antics at a Chelsea nightspot.

But McCullum insisted he has a duty of care for Stokes' well-being that over-rides disciplinary matters or the viability of his reign as skipper.

"When I first found out about it I was slightly bewildered, if I'm being honest. Then you go through a range of emotions. You go from being bewildered, on to angry, on to kind of gutted," he told reporters on Monday.

"But very quickly my overall emotion turned to worry and concern for Ben in particular.

"Since then it has been about how we support these guys, whilst not overlooking the fact they have not lived up to the standards we have set for ourselves.

"For me it's very much about how we support these guys through the next stage, in particular Ben. That is very much where my mind is at, my worry for him."

McCullum refused to say whether he believes Stokes should remain as captain, after England were also criticised for their off-field behaviour during the tour to New Zealand and Australia.

"What will be will be, down the line. Those decisions are not for now. The concern is making sure Ben is fine," he said.

"We need to make sure we look after him, rally around him, and in time we'll get on to those sorts of decisions.

"For me I'm just making sure I'm checking in with him. That's where things sit at the moment."

Stokes has trained with his English county Durham over recent days and could play against Northamptonshire on Friday.

But McCullum took a deep breath before answering when quizzed on the wisdom of Stokes returning to action.

"I'm worried about Ben. That's it," he said. "I'll leave it at that."

England are back in training for the first time since the incident and McCullum said he was encouraged by the atmosphere among the players.

"I was intrigued to see how the team was and I was quite happy to be honest. There was a calm," he said.

"Guys were still talking about last week, they touched on what had happened after."

Z.AlNajjar--SF-PST