'It Was a Shame...': Australia Star Steve Smith Opens up on Post-Ashes Beer Controversy

From on-field drama to off-field controversies, the 2023 Ashes had it all. However, nearly two weeks after the last ball of the series was bowled in London, one particular incident continues to be a burning issue in Australia.

It’s been a custom for both Australia and England players to share a beer or two in the dressing room once an Ashes series comes to an end. However, this time around, controversy erupted when the tourists were allegedly made to wait for two hours as their efforts to ask their hosts for a drinks were snubbed.

A clarification was made later on citing post-match speeches taking longer time than anticipated with claims the two set of players did meet but at a nightclub later on.

Now, former Australia captain Steven Smith has criticised England for not participating in the post-Ashes revelry, which is has been a long-time tradition.

According to Smith, the Aussie brigade was awaiting in all readiness but England didn’t show up.

Courtesy of their unexpected antics, the English side garnered plenty of criticism, forcing captain Ben Stokes to issue a formal clarification on social media.

“To clarify, our wrap took longer than expected because of multiple last-time events,” Stokes tweeted.

Speaking to SEN 1170′s The Run Home, Smith revealed what exactly happened on that day. According to the Aussie batter, it was the first time in his almost 13-year-old career that he saw both teams not participating in a beer party.

“It was unfortunate, a bit of a shame,” Smith added.

Furthermore, Smith said that players from the visiting unit did knock on the door of England’s dressing room “a couple of times” as they were “waiting around a while.”

“At one point, Stokesy came out and said ‘two minutes’ but about an hour passed. We thought, ‘We can’t keep sitting here. Are we going to have a beer or not?’ Our players got a bit fed up and decided it was time to go,” Smith added.

Stokes, however, later invited the Australian players to meet at a nightclub where they would have beers together. A few players from the Australian squad did give a thumbs-up to the new plan. But Smith could not join them as he had already taken a flight to Australia.

“I had gone home by that stage. It was a shame not to have a beer and reflect on what was a pretty cool series,” the 34-year-old said.

This year, Australia looked promising to end their 22-year-long wait to win an Ashes series on English soil. The visitors got the better of England in the opening two games. But the hosts made a roaring comeback in the following games, with the five-match series ending in a 2-2 draw.