The latest incident in Danny Cipriani’s far from quiet life — being floored by a right hook from Josh Lewsey during a London Wasps training session on Tuesday — has led to speculation that the 20-year-old is in danger of allowing his private life to undermine his attempts to be recognised as the best fly half in the world.

Cipriani was hit by Lewsey after being baited about missing a tackle, with England’s World Cup-winning wing then being told “to shut up or be shut up”. The next thing Cipriani knew he was on the ground nursing a cut lip.

The incident has highlighted how quickly Cipriani’s profile and stock have risen in a such a short time but also raised concerns that he has not achieved anything to justify the hype. He has featured in possibly more lurid front-page stories in the tabloids than he has won England caps — three.

Lawrence Dallaglio, the former Wasps and England captain who has just returned from a gruelling but epic eight-day, 950-kilometre charity cycle ride in the Pyrenees in aid of BLISS, the special care baby charity, dismissed the notion that Cipriani is in danger of losing his way. “We don’t need to overreact to that,” Dallaglio said yesterday. “Scuffles and dust-ups happen in rugby. It shows there is a big edge in training. Danny is not hurt and he will probably walk into the dressing-room a little more humble in the morning and that is no bad thing. Wasps is a club that will ensure he keeps both feet on the ground. The media only follow winners and Danny is a winner.”

While there is no direct correlation between the showbiz image and what Cipriani does on the rugby field, there is a thin dividing line between confidence and attitude, and arrogance and swagger. This is especially so in a sport that prides itself on its team ethic rather than the individual. In rugby, more than any other sport, you have to earn respect.

“The way Danny is perceived could turn into a real problem in the dressing-room,” a source close to the club said. “There are a lot of Danny Cipriani types in football, but they stick out like a sore thumb in rugby. It does not go down well. But there is no denying he is a fantastic player who has the lot. As long as he keeps producing, then he can probably get away with it.”

Stuart Higgins, the former Editor of The Sun who is the player’s media adviser, controls carefully which interviews Cipriani gives. He accepts, however, that he cannot control what his client does in his downtime. “He wants to be the greatest fly half in the world and does not want to be a celebrity. That is his focus,” Higgins said. “There is interest in him, but we are trying to do that in a relevant manner, as a committed rugby player, and not as a personality who appears on the front cover of Heat or other glossy magazines.”

Whatever the arguments about Cipriani — who has been dating the model and actress Kelly Brook — there is no denying that he has star quality. He is far from conventional, not least in his background. Justifiable comparisons have been made with Gavin Henson, the Wales centre, who appears to have found a measure of stability in his life with Charlotte Church, the singer.

Brian Ashton, the former England head coach, famously dropped Cipriani four days before he was due to make his England debut against Scotland in this year’s RBS Six Nations Championship after the player was seen leaving a nightclub. He has known him since he was 15. “I don’t think he needs help,” Ashton said. “He is a unique personality and rugby player. I am not surprised that he attracts attention. That is the way of the world for people like him. He has good people around him.”

After Wasps’ poor start to the Guinness Premiership season, with five defeats in six matches, and only four days before the start of the Heineken Cup, the bust-up and the attention it has created is something the club could have done without. Ian McGeechan, the director of rugby, said that neither player would be disciplined and that the extra bite in training that prompted the argument was what was needed.

Shaun Edwards, the Wasps head coach, said: “It is Heineken Cup week. There is always a fight in Heineken Cup week. We don’t condone punching, particularly in a game because you get sent off for it, but sometimes in training emotions run a little bit wild.”

Nor is Dallaglio concerned. “I would be alarmed if they were losing by ten, 15, 20 points a game,” he said. “They are not. Any team that can go to Leicester and win, as Wasps did, is not too far away. For a team not being in form, they could not ask for a better start in Europe than home to Castres. They have to be pleased with that.”

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