MCC expels member over Ashes altercation with Australia players
The MCC has expelled one member and handed out lengthy suspensions to two others involved in an incident that occurred in the Long Room on day five of the second Ashes Test at Lord’s.
A flashpoint between Australian batters Usman Khawaja and David Warner and MCC members on 2 July was caught by television cameras as the players walked off for lunch not long after the controversial dismissal of England’s Jonny Bairstow by wicketkeeper Alex Carey.
Australia’s captain, Pat Cummins, later stated his team experienced “aggressive and abusive” behaviour, which prompted an apology from the MCC and a promise to conduct a full investigation.
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It has now been announced that the MCC’s disciplinary process has ended and a panel has decided on penalties due to the actions of the three individuals falling “well below the behaviour expected” from members.
One MCC member has been expelled owing to “abusive, offensive or inappropriate behaviour or language”, while another is suspended for four and a half years and the other individual involved will serve a 30-month suspension.
“Details of the disciplinary process are confidential, and the club will not be publishing the names of the three individuals who have been sanctioned,” an MCC statement read.
“The actions of the three individuals in the pavilion on the day in question fell well below the behaviour expected from our members. The penalties set out are the consequences of breaching the club’s code of conduct. MCC will not be making any further comment on the matter at this time.”
In the aftermath of the incident, MCC chair Bruce Carnegie-Brown set out a list of protocols. These included expanding the roped-off area where players walk through as they make their way from the dressing room to the pitch and back again, while members will be prohibited from using the stairwell when the teams are coming on and off the field and must either wait at the ground or top floor level.
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Carnegie-Brown also called upon members to police one another’s behaviour, as well as reacquainting themselves with the organisation’s code of conduct.