JOE ROOT has pulled out of team-mate Jos Buttler’s stag weekend in Amsterdam in the wake of the Ben Stokes scandal.
Test captain Root and fast bowler Stuart Broad have decided to stay away from the party.
Several players were still intending to fly to the Dutch capital on Saturday to raise a glass for Buttler’s wedding to Louise Webber later this month.
An England insider revealed that Root felt it would be unwise to join the stag weekend in the current climate.
Buttler, one-day batsman Jason Roy and Stokes himself are all getting married in October.
All-rounder Stokes, whose wedding is on October 14, has been ordered by police to return to Bristol next week to be re-interviewed following his arrest earlier this week for suspected actual bodily harm.
Strokes has also reportedly pulled out of Buttler's stag do following his Bristol brawl.
The brilliant England all-rounder and Alex Hales have been banned indefinitely by England, with Stokes' Ashes hopes hanging by a thread.
Stokes is due to marry Clare Ratcliffe next weekend, with fellow England and Indian Premier League star Buttler's set to marry next month.
According to the Times, Stokes has also decided to swerve Buttler's stag.
The all-rounder — also set to be axed as vice-skipper — was named in England's Ashes squad on Wednesday.
But he broke a hand in the fight and faces a battle to be fit for the First Test in Australia.
Shocking footage acquired by The Sun shows Stokes, 26, thumping two men during the brawl in Bristol at 2.35am on Monday.
He was arrested for suspected actual bodily harm and released without charge while police investigate.
The video will form a key part of England supremo Andrew Strauss’ probe into the behaviour of Stokes, Hales and up to five team-mates.
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Strauss had threatened to fine or suspend players while head coach Trevor Bayliss blasted his team as “unprofessional” and is considering an Ashes curfew.
It is almost inconceivable that Stokes can remain as captain Joe Root’s deputy for the tour and, once ECB chiefs have seen the footage, he could also be fined.
As revealed by SunSport, Stokes had an X-ray on Tuesday which revealed a fracture to the side of his right hand just below the little finger.
Medics say the recovery time is around six weeks, meaning he will miss some of the warm-up games but should be fit for the First Test in Brisbane on November 23.
But Stokes' ban means that his participation is now in major doubt whether he recovers or not.
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