Key to probe drinking claims as Duckett faces inquest over video

Rob Key has defended England's mid-tour break in Noosa but confirmed he will look into reports that excessive drinking by players in between the second and third Ashes Tests turned it into a "glorified stag do".

- Ali Martin Melbourne

Key was speaking before unverified social media footage emerged of what appears to be Ben Duckett looking worse for wear during the team's stay in the Queensland resort town.

Sitting 3-0 down to Australia, the Ashes having gone, the team director, Key, has followed the head coach, Brendon McCullum, in stating that his future now rests in the hands of senior figures at the England and Wales Cricket Board. Among the questions that will be asked in a post-series review is whether the four-night break on Queensland's Sunshine Coast best prepared them for the pivotal Adelaide Test.

According to the BBC, a number of players spent six days drinking, having begun after the eight-wicket defeat in Brisbane. Speaking some hours before the video alleged to be Duckett began circulating, Key said: "If there's things where people are saying that our players went out and drank excessively then of course we'll be looking into that.

"I'm not a drinker. Drinking excessive amounts for an international cricket team is not something that I'd expect to see at any stage. We've added security. We've got enough ways of finding out what happened. And everything that I've heard so far is that they sat down, had lunch, had dinner and didn't go out late and had the odd drink. I don't mind that."