Harry Brook made his third public apology in three weeks yesterday, when he admitted lying about other England players being present on a night out in Wellington which resulted in him being fined £30,000 and under threat of losing his white-ball captaincy.
Brook had previously claimed to be on his own when he was ‘clocked’ by a bouncer in a Wellington nightclub, hours before the final ODI of England’s series in New Zealand last year.
However, after a report was published by The Telegraph yesterday (January 30) that revealed Jacob Bethell and Josh Tongue were both also under investigation by the Cricket Regulator for the same incident, Brook released another statement which said: “I accept responsibility for my actions in Wellington and acknowledge that others were present that evening. I regret my previous comments and my intention was to protect my teammates from being drawn into a situation that arose as a result of my own decisions.”
The initial incident happened on October 31, 2025, but no details about the night in question or subsequent disciplinary measures were released by the ECB until the final day of the fifth Ashes Test on January 8. Now, almost three months on from the incident, and questions continuing over the culture within England’s dressing room, the ECB’s handling of the debacle, and calls for Brook to be removed as white-ball captain, a clearer picture is beginning to emerge.
October 31, 2025 – Wellington
This is what we know about the night in question. Several members of England’s ODI squad in New Zealand went out drinking in the evening. Video footage later emerged on social media of a group of England players drinking in a rooftop bar. Brook, along with Bethell and Tongue (not part of the ODI squad, but in New Zealand as part of his Ashes preparation) – who can both be seen in the video – went on to a nightclub, where Brook was ‘clocked’ by a bouncer while attempting to get in.
November 1, 2025 – Wellington
England played the final ODI of their series in New Zealand. After batting first, they were bowled out for 222, with Brook out for six off 11 balls. Bethell, also playing in the match, scored 11 off 16 balls. New Zealand won the match by two wickets with 32 balls remaining, consigning England to a 3-0 series defeat.
At some point during the game, Brook reported the incident from the night before to management. He was subsequently fined £30,000 by the ECB, the maximum amount a player can be fined under England central contract protocols. He also reportedly came close to being sacked as England white-ball captain, and later said that losing the captaincy “was definitely going through my mind”.
No details that the incident had happened or that subsequent disciplinary measures had been issued against any player were made public by the ECB.
December 23, 2025 – Melbourne
England managing director Rob Key gave an interview after England had slumped to a 3-0 series deficit in the Ashes, in which he pledged to investigate the conduct of players during their mid-series break in Noosa. Reports had emerged of England players drinking heavily during the getaway in between the second and third Tests, while a video of Ben Duckett intoxicated and unsure of how to get back to the team hotel had circulated on social media.
"Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol for an international cricket team is not something that I'd expect to see at any stage, and it would be a fault not to look into what happened there,” said Key. “But from everything that I've heard so far, they were very well behaved… Everything that I've heard so far is that they sat down, had lunch, had dinner, didn't go out late, had the odd drink. I don't mind that. If it goes past that, then that's an issue as far as I'm concerned”
Key also revealed that Brook and Bethell had been warned by team management in response to being filmed drinking the night before the third ODI in New Zealand. He also denied there was any formal action taken against either player regarding the video footage specifically – “I didn't feel like that was worthy of formal warnings, but it was probably worthy of informal ones."
January 8, 2026 – Sydney
Hours after England slumped to a five-wicket defeat in the final Ashes Test, The Telegraph revealed the first public details of the incident in Wellington. The details released in that report were that Brook was struck by a bouncer after being refused entry to a nightclub on October 31, that he came close to being sacked as white-ball captain and was fined £30,000, and that Brook was on his final warning for his behaviour when arrived in Australia for the Ashes.
An ECB spokesperson said at that time: “We are aware of this incident and it has been dealt with through a formal and confidential ECB disciplinary process. The player involved has apologised and acknowledged their conduct fell below expectations on this occasion.”
Brook also released a public apology: “I am determined to learn from this mistake and to rebuild trust through my future actions, both on and off the field. I apologise unreservedly and will work hard to ensure this does not happen again.”
January 21, 2026 – Colombo
Brook faced up to the media in a press conference ahead of England’s first ODI against Sri Lanka. While answering questions, Brook said the incident in Wellington began with some players “going out for food”.
“There was no intention of going out, no intention of putting ourselves in a tricky situation,” he said. “I took it upon myself to go out for a few more and I was on my own there. I shouldn't have been there. I was trying to get into a club and the bouncer just clocked me, unfortunately. I wouldn't say I was absolutely leathered. I'd had one too many drinks.”
As well as reiterating his apology for the incident, Brook also said that the decision to enforce a midnight curfew on England players and staff in Sri Lanka was “a group decision”.
January 30, 2026 – Colombo
A report from The Telegraph, published on the same day as England’s first T20I of their series against Sri Lanka, revealed that Tongue and Bethell were also present at the time of the bouncer incident in Wellington. It also revealed that all three of Brook, Bethell and Tongue were under investigation by the Cricket Regulator. The decision to investigate came a week after the regulatory body received paperwork from the incident from the ECB. The players could face charges of bringing the game into disrepute if there is enough evidence to substantiate them.
Following England’s six-wicket victory in the T20I, Brook released another public apology, which acknowledged other players were present during the incident in Wellington for the first time. “I have apologised and will continue to reflect on the matter,” read the statement. “This has been a challenging period in my career, but one from which I am learning. I recognise that I have more to learn regarding the off-field responsibilities that come with leadership and captaincy. I remain committed to developing in this area and to improving both personally and professionally.”
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