Staying Upright

I'm not sure I can get too excited or concerned about the performances of England's cricketers over the last few days, either on or off the field.

Personally I've never felt there was anything too dreadful about players going out after a defeat and having a drink or two to get it out of their system.

However, knowing what the British press is like and how many England fans were around to witness what was going on, it does seem a little weak-brained to do what Flintoff's alleged to have done.

Still, as long as he can stay upright during the game against Canada this afternoon, his team should be okay.

Come to think of it, they should be okay even if he can't.

POSTSCRIPT: Writing during the interval in the game against Canada it looks as though England, having scored 279 for 6, should indeed be okay. Flintoff, though, isn't there, upright or otherwise, having been dropped from the side and fined for his conduct, along with five other players. What has made things a bit more eyebrow-raising is the revelation that there have been a number of other incidents for which Flintoff has been warned in the past, making the hard line taken by the England management on this occasion all the more understandable, and, indeed, essential. It's also been made clear that he won't be taking over as captain if anything happens to prevent Michael Vaughan taking the reins during the rest of the World Cup.

Hopefully this will sort things out, but it's disturbing to learn that there have been other incidents in the past, especially during the Australian tour earlier this winter, when, in case anyone has forgotten, England struggled a bit.