England Cricketer Ben Duckett Receives £700 Fine for High-Speed Driving Offence
England cricket star Ben Duckett has been fined £700 after being caught driving at 93mph in a 70mph zone on the A50 near Stoke in August. The 31-year-old opening batter admitted the speeding offence through the Single Justice Procedure at Cannock Magistrates' Court.
Details of the Speeding Incident and Legal Consequences
The incident occurred just after 1:30pm on August 24th, hours before Duckett played a starring role in a Birmingham Phoenix Hundred win over Manchester Originals at Old Trafford. Staffordshire Police caught the cricketer using a speed gun and decided to pursue criminal prosecution rather than an out-of-court fine due to the excessive speed.
In addition to the £700 fine, Duckett received four penalty points on his driving licence and was ordered to pay £120 in costs plus a £280 victim surcharge, bringing his total court bill to £1,100. The case was handled behind closed doors last Friday without a formal court hearing, with Duckett entering his guilty plea online.
Duckett's Recent Career Decisions and Past Controversies
The speeding offence comes during a challenging period for the cricketer, who recently pulled out of a £200,000 contract with the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League to focus on recovering from what he described as a "ridiculously big dip" in form ahead of England's Test series against New Zealand in June.
This is not Duckett's first encounter with legal trouble. In 2015, as a rising star, he was prosecuted for drink-driving after crashing his car into a ditch in Northamptonshire, resulting in a 12-month road ban. The following year, he reportedly poured a drink over bowler James Anderson's head during a night out, and more recently apologized for being filmed drunk on a night out in Noosa, Australia during the Ashes series.
Duckett's Cricket Career and Current Standing
Duckett was first selected for England's Test side in 2016 and became a key opening batter from 2022, adapting well to the team's aggressive "Bazball" style of play. He opens the batting for England in both Test matches and limited overs games and has been a regular feature in The Hundred tournament.
The cricketer admitted the speeding offence in September after being contacted by Staffordshire Police and will now receive instructions for settling his court fines. Despite his recent form struggles and legal issues, Duckett remains an important player in England's cricket setup as he prepares for upcoming international commitments.
