England’s Ashes team under fire as 'cameraman manhandled in ugly incident' ahead of crucial third Test

A member of England’s security detail then became involved in a verbal dispute with a camera operator.

He repeatedly told him to "get out of my face" as he filmed members of the touring squad from close proximity.

Cricket Australia’s media advisories have explicitly stated that players from both sides will be unavailable for interview during travel days, after England captain Ben Stokes and batter Joe Root were questioned by reporters at Perth airport following the series opener.

CA request that any images be captured from "a respectful distance”.

There is no sign of any physical altercation in the available footage but a news report on the episode shown by Channel 7 described it as an "ugly incident" and said employee Nick Carrigan was “manhandled”.

Carrigan said: "It was quite a shock."

A spokesman for the England and Wales Cricket Board declined to comment.

The Australian media has been a persistent thorn in England’s side since they landed Down Under, with newspapers pumping out derogatory headlines and photographers following players away from the pitch on days off.

Some were followed by a drone while playing a round of golf earlier in the tour, and shots of squad members riding e-scooters in Brisbane without safety helmets became front page news for the Courier Mail, who dispatched a political reporter to ask Stokes if he would apologise to the people of Queensland.

At 2-0 down in the five-match series, England are already in must-win territory after just six days on the field.

With temperatures climbing in South Australia, England are tipped to be forced to resort to a change in bowling.

There is likely to be a significant job for the slow bowlers to do at the Adelaide Oval, and the hosts have already signalled their intentions to bring Nathan Lyon back into the XI.

But while they have the luxury of drafting a 140-cap veteran with 562 wickets under his belt, England have no such luck.

Instead, they must make a tricky judgment call over Shoaib Bashir.

The 22-year-old has been backed by the selectors for the past two years despite inconsistent appearances and a stalled domestic career that has left him surplus to requirements at Somerset.

Pre-series planning would have earmarked Bashir for a place on Wednesday’s team-sheet but concerns are creeping in.

After all-rounder Will Jacks was preferred for the second Test, Bashir was released to play for England Lions against Australia A and returned disappointing figures of nought for 115 from 25.

Having failed to lay a glove on the second string, it would be optimistic to expect the off-spinner to excel against Australia’s Test XI.

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