ECB ensures Trescothick tale won't go away

Marcus Trescothick feels the cold at Somerset's media day © Getty Images

The ECB, who are already accused of mishandling the media at the time of Marcus Trescothick's sudden departure from India and in the weeks that followed, have now reportedly banned the player from talking to the press.

Trescothick went public this week, claiming that his withdrawal from the India tour was largely as a result of him suffering from a viral infection. But that explanation left many unconvinced. On Tuesday, Somerset held their usual eve-of-season media day, but only photographers were allowed into Trescothick's press conference, much to the frustration and anger of other reporters.

The blame was directed at the ECB, and especially Colin Gibson, its director of communications. "It is unprecedented for an England cricketer to appear with an ECB minder and not even to exchange pleasantries with reporters, some of whom, down the years, have shared his favourite bangers with him," wrote Ivo Tennant in the Times. "About 25 journalists were repelled not by the player but by Gibson, heeding the advice of confidants of the England opening batsman, who include Neil Fairbrother, the cricketer turned agent."

Tennant added: "The ECB controls his [Trescothick's] every visit to the crease and, after advice from Fairbrother, his every utterance. The upshot is a muddle that would have been best avoided by a straightforward explanation when Trescothick left the tour."

In the Daily Telegraph Derek Pringle was also less than impressed, asking why, if Trescothick did have a virus, was it not mentioned at the time by the team doctor, as was the case with other players. "When this was put to Gibson, doctor-patient confidentiality was cited. The reason given by Duncan Fletcher at the time was that Trescothick had returned home for `family reasons' and that `his privacy should be respected'. This has now been spun by the ECB to read `personal reasons' - a semantic switch that looks intended to cover all interpretations."

And former England international Dominic Cork was also unimpressed with the ECB. ''Why's it taken two months for this to come out, if he's got a virus let's say it from the off,'' Cork told BBC Sport. ''I just think there's been so many mixed messages sent out and I don't blame Marcus, I actually blame the ECB. One thing's coming from Fletcher and then something else is coming from the ECB - it needs to just be clarified exactly what was happening.

''Let's just be open because everybody's going to be suspicious about what it is and everybody's going to question it."