England captain Ben Stokes
England captain Ben Stokes with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar (Credits: X)

England captain Ben Stokes has come under scrutiny for his antics on the final day of the recently-concluded fourth Test against India at Old Trafford.

The penultimate match of the series ended in a draw as India batted for more than 140 overs to pull off an impressive draw. After England took a huge lead of 311 runs in the first innings, India were in a precarious position. Their position further deteriorated when they lost the wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan inside the first over.

However, the tourists lost just two more wickets in 142.1 overs to walk away with a draw. Captain Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar scored hundreds while KL Rahul scored 90 as India secured a famous draw in Manchester.

Also Read: They Only Speak Cricket But Cannot Understand Cricket: Gautam Gambhir On Shubman Gill’s Critics

Ben Stokes on extending handshake:

While Team India secured a stunning draw to keep the five-match series alive, Ben Stokes’ on-field behaviour became a major talking point. As the match was heading towards an inevitable draw, the England allrounder decided to approach Jadeja and Sundar with an outstretched hand, offering a handshake to put an end to the proceedings.

However, both Jadeja and Sundar turned down the offer as they were close to their hundreds. Jadeja was batting on 89 while Sundar needed 20 more runs to score his first-ever Test hundred. Ben Stokes looked visibly frustrated as India refused to agree to the draw. A number of other England players also attacked Jadeja and Sundar verbally but it did not make any difference.

Both Jadeja and Sundar went on to complete their centuries before deciding to shake hands with the England players. Stokes has been facing severe criticism from several quarters for his behavior and he has now opened up on the incident. Speaking to the media after the match, the England star said:

“As soon as it got to that point where the draw was inevitable, I was never going to risk any of my front-line bowlers with the short turnaround that we have and the workload that we’ve got through this week and throughout the series as well… I wasn’t going to risk any of my proper bowling options in that situation, knowing what was going on.”

Even though the match ended in a draw, England are leading the series 2-1. The fifth and final Test is scheduled to be played from July 31.