England cricketers barred from speaking to media amid recent off-field controversies

The England Cricket Board (ECB) has prohibited its players from speaking to the media amid Yorkshire's racism fallout and Australia's sexting scandal, according to the Daily Mail. Azeem Rafiq, who played for Yorkshire, gave some explosive evidence of his experiences at the club at a recent DCMS hearing.

While Azeem Rafiq hasn't represented England, the saga has plenty of links to the national team's players. England skipper Joe Root, who is in Australia gearing for the Ashes series, has also come in the mix. Hence, it could affect their preparations.

During the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) hearing, Rafiq claimed that former England batsman Gary Ballance used the slur 'Kevin' to describe black people. In contrast, the off-spinner accused Alex Hales of naming his dog Kevin because it was black.

Meanwhile, Rafiq said Root never indulged in dishing out racial slurs. However, the England skipper's admission of not recalling any such statements hurt him. The 31-year-old revealed that Root was Ballance's roommate and was part of conversations where Rafiq faced racial discrimination.

A number of notable personalities from the sport dragged into the scandal increased, namely Tim Bresnan, Michael Vaughan, David Lloyd and Matthew Hoggard.

Australia to have a new skipper ahead of the first Test against England

Tim Paine. (Image Credits: Getty)

As for the Australian team, keeper-batsman Tim Paine stepped down as Test captain as Cricket Australia unveiled some scandalous texts to a former colleague in 2017. Paine announced his resignation in an emotional press conference. However, he intends to play in the upcoming Ashes series.

Cricket Australia are most likely to hand over the captaincy duties to pace bowler Pat Cummins, who has won several votes from former cricketers in the past few months.

The board is also officially considering Steve Smith for a second leadership reign. Should Cummins lead the Test side, it will be the first time since 1956 that Australia will have a frontline bowler in the role.