Duckett was fined the maximum £1,500 and given a final written warning regarding his conduct after pouring a pint of beer over the head of Test vice-captain Anderson in a bar in Perth.

But the ECB resisted calls to get tough and send him home from Australia despite fears voiced that a drinking culture in England squads needs tackling before it damages the sport.

Moeen Ali believes England’s increasingly troubled relationship with alcohol is creating an image problem which could put off a generation of youngsters from engaging with cricket.

The off-spinner was handed the hospital pass of having to comment on the fallout from the Duckett incident in his guise as captain of an England side which drew with a Cricket Australia XI yesterday.

But the all-rounder did not pull his punches, insisting players at the highest level had a responsibility to behave better and that a “culture change” within the squad was needed given the scrutiny they are under.

Moeen was asked whether England were “out of control” on this tour and while he felt that label was “unfair”, he conceded there was a danger of the sport’s image being tarnished by repeated late-night indiscretions.

“As cricketers and professionals, the scrutiny is on us [so] we have to be careful and behave ourselves. With young kids watching and hearing the news, we have to be on our best behaviour,” he said.

“It’s really important that we inspire the younger generation to take up the game. It could turn them away and that’s not what we want.

“Maybe the culture needs to change now with so much media and coverage of cricket. We want cricket to grow for kids and for families to come and watch, so we have to be on our best behaviour.”

Moeen’s words will resonate both in Perth and London where the ECB were understood to be equally concerned about the repeated errors of judgment which have marred this Ashes tour.

The latest incident came in the early hours last Friday when Lions opener Duckett poured a pint of beer over the head of England’s most senior bowler in The Avenue bar in Perth.

Few details emerged from official channels yesterday but it was confirmed captain Joe Root was not present, nor were Alastair Cook, Moeen, Ben Foakes or Jake Ball.

Bayliss and Lions boss Andy Flower were both furious and the former is understood to be deeply concerned that repeated messages are not getting through. Not least of which because Andrew Strauss had addressed the entire touring party when he imposed the curfew in Adelaide the day after Jonny Bairstow’s head-butt, speaking firmly and at length about responsibilities.

His words went unheeded with the first night for the senior squad in Perth without curfew ending with more trouble.

The immediate repercussions were that Duckett missed the Lions match which was drawn after Moeen and CA contrived a target of 294 in 37 overs and the hosts reached 269-8.

Longer term, Mark Wood took two wickets early in CA XI’s first innings and bowled at a decent pace all day to impress his captain, who said his return from injury was “good to see”.

England will still name an unchanged side for the third Test starting in Perth on Thursday, but Wood is likely to stay close to the squad with Melbourne and Sydney in mind, the added benefit being that he is tee-total.