Rishi Sunak has backed Ben Stokes and the England captain’s criticism of the manner in which Australia won the second Ashes Test.
The Prime Minister has commented on the controversial dismissal, which saw Australian wicket-keeper Alex Carey throw down the stumps at Lord’s after Jonny Bairstow left his crease and began to walk down the pitch to talk with Stokes.
Sunak, who is a cricket fan and attended the second Test at Lord’s for day four on Saturday, joined the debate after Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer avoided the question about the match four times.
Sunak’s official spokesman said: “The Prime Minister agrees with Ben Stokes. He said he simply wouldn’t want to win a game in the manner Australia did.
“But the game did provide an opportunity to see Ben Stokes at his best and it was an incredible test match.
“He has confidence that England will bounce back at Headingley (in the Third Test starting on Thursday).”
Asked whether Mr Sunak thought that Australia’s actions were not in keeping with the spirit of cricket, his spokesman added: “Yes”.
The incident, which has created a furore around the sport, has seen former England star Geoffrey Boycott write a column in the Telegraph demanding Australia make a public apology. While former England cricketers Michael Vaughan, Eoin Morgan, Sir Andrew Strauss and Michael Atherton did not have issues with Australia’s play.
Stokes, who produced a magnificent 155 in the second innings, claimed he would have withdrawn the appeal if the roles were reversed.
The Prince of Wales, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Prince George in the box during day four of the second Ashes test match at Lord’s— (PA Wire)
Stokes said: “The first thing that needs to be said is that it is out. But would I want to win a game in that manner? The answer for me is no.
“If the shoe was on the other foot, I would have a deep think about the whole spirit of the game. If I was fielding captain at the time I would have put a lot more pressure on the umpires to ask them what their decision was around the (end of the) over.
“Jonny was in his crease, then left his crease to come out and have the conversation between overs like every batsman does. For Australia it was the match-winning moment.”
While Australia skipper Pat Cummins disagreed, calling Carey’s act “fair play”.
Cummins added: “That is the rules,” he said. “That is how I saw it.”
The incident, which will go down in Ashes folklore, saw the Yorkshireman duck a bouncer before his naive wander down the wicket. Following Carey’s smart thinking, the decision was upheld after an umpire review, leaving Bairstow furious. The England wicket-keeper could later be seen giving the most intense handshake to Carey following the conclusion of the match on the steps of the pavilion.
The moment ignited the atmosphere at Lord’s, prompting a chorus of boos from all corners of the ground, and chants of “same old Aussies, always cheating”.
Worse was to come though, with Australia given a hostile reception in the Lord’s long room at the lunch interval, with words exchanged between players and members.
Australia players Usman Khawaja and David Warner experienced “aggressive and abusive” behaviour, which led to the MCC suspending three members after the angry confrontation.
Stuart Broad, who joined the match following the dismissal, had words to say when he came to the crease after Bairstow’s wicket, and could be heard telling Carey, “That’s all you’ll be remembered for, that.”
Tensions between the sides will spill over into the third Test, which begins on Thursday, 6 July. England coach Brendon McCullum claimed there would be no truce
“I can’t imagine we’ll be having a beer with them any time soon,” McCullum said. “We have three Tests to land some blows and try to win the Ashes. That is where our focus will be.”
While his counterpart Andrew McDonald reacted, claiming he was “somewhat disappointed” by McCullum’s remarks.
Asked whether there was any bad blood, Cummins looked to diffuse the situation: “Not from our team, you might have to ask them. It was a wonderful contest. It’s been a great Ashes series so far.”
