England quick bowler Josh Tongue says he has “learned” from the New Zealand nightclub episode by which team-mate Harry Brook was punched by a bouncer.
Tongue was on an evening out with England limited-overs skipper Brook and all-rounder Jacob Bethell in Wellington on 1 November, the night earlier than a one-day worldwide, when the incident occurred.
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Brook was fined and given a final warning over his conduct, although the matter solely got here to gentle greater than two months after it occurred and following the ultimate Test of a dismal Ashes collection which England misplaced 4-1.
Unlike Brook and Bethell, Tongue was not in England’s squad for the ODI towards the Kiwis however had been coaching with the group to construct up his bowling workload earlier than the Ashes.
The trio are under investigation by the Cricket Regulator over the incident within the New Zealand capital.
Tongue, 28, instructed BBC Sport he was now eager to focus on issues on the pitch with the English home season set to get below method later this week.
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“I’ve learned from it and I’m just trying to focus on the cricket now,” Tongue mentioned.
“I’m just looking forward to the summer starting. We’re privileged to play for England and I can’t wait to step back on that pitch if selected.”
England’s gamers have been broadly criticised for his or her off-field behaviour throughout the Ashes, together with claims of extreme ingesting throughout a mid-series break within the coastal resort of Noosa.
Tongue mentioned England’s gamers will now “try to move forward” from the Ashes fallout however felt a few of the claims in regards to the group’s off-field actions had been “been blown out of proportion”.
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“When it comes to the training days, we train really hard,” mentioned Tongue, who emerged with credit score from the Ashes after he took 18 wickets in three Tests at 20.11.
“We’re human beings, and we feel like we need to get away from cricket as well, because obviously when you’re playing in front of 40,000, 60,000, or even 95,000 people, you’ve got to switch off from the game.”
Tongue mentioned he had “no opinion” on current feedback made by Jonny Bairstow and Liam Livingstone in regards to the tradition, and an obvious lack of care, inside the England set-up.
And the Nottinghamshire fast gave his full backing to England head coach Brendon McCullum, who stored his job following a post-Ashes evaluate.
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“I’m really happy that Baz [McCullum] is staying as head coach. I get on really well with Baz and he gives me a lot of confidence,” Tongue mentioned.
“One of the best things he gives is he helps you to be as high [confidence wise] as you can be before stepping onto that pitch.
“That’s how you are going to carry out at your greatest – it helps me quite a bit.”
‘Want to play all three formats’
Tongue was named in England’s squad for the T20 World Cup but did not make an appearance in the tournament.
Despite carrying the drinks in India and Sri Lanka, Tongue, who was the leading wicket-taker in The Hundred last year, was not frustrated by his lack of game time.
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“It was an unimaginable expertise. Obviously, we had the Sri Lanka collection beforehand after which main into the World Cup,” Tongue explained.
“I wasn’t disenchanted that I did not play. I feel simply to be there in that surroundings, bowling on the likes of Jos Buttler and Harry Brook within the nets, you are going to study a lot.
“I feel like training there has brought my white-ball game further along and I just want to know how to put that into a game.”
England play three Tests towards each New Zealand and Pakistan this summer season in addition to white-ball collection towards India and Sri Lanka.
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Tongue was awarded a two-year central contract by the England and Wales Cricket Board in November, primarily as a reward for his performances within the Test group.
However, he’s eager to power his method into England’s T20 and ODI squads over the following six months.
“I want to play all three formats for England,” Tongue added.
“I’ve ticked off the Test stuff and I really enjoy Test match cricket, but I also want to have the white-ball stuff behind me as well.
“I really feel like this summer season’s going to be a great style of that.”