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Ball Stepping, Forced Handshake: England's Questionable Tactics On Day 5 Of 4th Test

Abhinav Tyagi

India vs England - (Source : @Johns/X.com)India vs England - (Source : @Johns/X.com)

Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar stole the limelight on Day 5 of the fourth Test after the two lower-middle order batters frustrated England with their unbeaten 203-run stand. 

The stand did hurt England's ego as victory was in their hand, but the two southpaws snatched the draw from the jaws of defeat. When the hosts realised that the two batters have settled down, the Ben Stokes-led side opted for other means, which were questioned and didn't go unnoticed. 

Meanwhile, this article will look at all the questionable tactics by England on Day 5 of the Manchester Test. 

1. Joe Root And Zak Crawley Warned By Umpires

Firstly, Joe Root and Zak Crawley tried some cheeky stuff as they were standing near the mid-on, point position and in the 122nd over of the match, the two fielders deliberately threw the ball on a bounce to the keeper that they on the hard surface to get the ball rough from one side and help the bowlers get reverse swing. 

However, the act was noticed by the on-field umpire, and he issued a warning to the two England batters and added that India would be awarded five penalty runs if he found them guilty on another occasion.

Eventually, the plan didn't work out as Jadeja and Sundar remained unbeaten till the end of the fourth innings. 

2. Scuffing The Ball Under The Feet

A video went viral on the internet following the end of play on Day 5, which featured England bowler Brydon Carse stepping on the ball to stop it from racing away. However, the act was not liked by the netizens as they claimed that it was a deliberate act by the star seamer to get the ball wobble. 

There is no complaint filed by India, nor has any action been initiated, as the act could also have been an accident. Nonetheless, the internet is unhappy and slammed England for their act. 

3. The Questionable Draw

As soon as the last hour of play started, and the two teams were eligible to end the match in a draw, Ben Stokes offered a draw, following which Ravindra Jadeja refused the offer.

The act didn't go well with Stokes, and the England captain resorted to questionable tactics as he ended up in a verbal argument with Jadeja and belittled his players with ' Do you want to score a hundred against Brook and Duckett's remark. 

Further, Stokes brought Brook into the attack and asked him to bowl half-pitched deliveries at 60 kmph to let Jadeja and Sundar complete their hundreds. Stokes' throwing a tantrum was questioned and heavily criticised on the internet.