A former England cricketer is under police investigation for an allegation of sexual assault, and claims that two women had their drinks tampered with in a London pub co-owned by a consortium of current and past sports players.
On Friday, the Metropolitan Police issued a statement to the Daily Telegraph confirming that investigators interrogated a man in his 40s in June following a report regarding an alleged spiking and attack. They are appealing for witnesses
“It is believed that two women were spiked, with one also reportedly subjected to sexual assault,” the statement indicated. A man in his forties was interviewed under caution on Thursday, June 5. Investigations are underway, and no arrests have been made at this juncture.
The purported spiking reportedly occurred at The Boundary (https://share.google/jZT3K9i83hku2l9iU), a cricket-themed pub in Chelsea co-owned by Brendon McCullum, the head coach of the England cricket team, and white-ball batsman Jos Buttler, along with other members of the England squad.
Eoin Morgan, the captain of the 50-over World Cup-winning team, former one-day international batter Sam Billings, former South Africa captain Graeme Smith, Ireland cricketer Paul Stirling, and England & British Lions rugby union hooker Jamie George are also stockholders.
None of the sports franchise proprietors were in attendance during the said incident, which reportedly occurred on the inaugural day of England’s only Test match against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge on 22 May.
The England and Wales Cricket Board has been cognisant of the claims for an extended period due to the pub’s ownership. Upon being approached by the Guardian, it refrained from providing a statement.
The Boundary debuted in March and has swiftly established a reputation for drawing current and former cricketers for late-night beverages this summer. The event may elicit uncomfortable enquiries for the ECB, especially in anticipation of this winter’s Ashes tour.
English cricket has faced multiple instances of sexual misbehaviour in recent years. A former county coach, whose name remains undisclosed, was barred from the sport for nine months in August after confessing to transmitting sexually explicit images to two female junior staff members.
Following his conviction by the ECB’s independent Cricket Discipline Panel, his identity was concealed due to a “serious risk of harm” associated with its disclosure and he would not be able to continue with his deviant behaviour.
The coach acknowledged five counts of professional misconduct, which included transmitting sexual photos to two co-workers. The panel observed that one of the ladies was significantly younger and that he had a considerably more senior position than she did at the club.
In November of the previous year, a professional coach was suspended for six months due to “inappropriate sexual behaviour” during a pre-season tour for an undisclosed men’s and women’s county team.
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