Rishi Sunak backed England cricket captain Ben Stokes on Monday over the dismissal of Jonny Bairstow which was escalating into a full-blown bust-up with the Aussies.
The Prime Minister, a cricket fan, waded into the row after Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer ducked the question four times over whether the Australian team had conducted themselves rightly at Lord’s within the spirit of the game.
Stokes, who smashed 155 in the game which England lost, made it clear the manner of the Bairstow wicket left a bitter taste and suggested he may have withdrawn the appeal in similar circumstances.
“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,” he said.
“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 matchwinning moment.”
Asked about the incident, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “The PM 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).”
Earlier, Labour had also backed Stokes over the controversial dismissal of Bairstow.
Shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell told The Standard: “It was within the rules but not within the spirit.”
However, Ms Frazer repeatedly ducked the question when asked about it on LBC Radio.
Bairstow felt the over had been completed, which would have rendered the ball dead, but Carey’s intervention was deemed to be within the laws of the game and the wicket stood.
Nearly 32,000 fans in the stands went apoplectic and things even took an angry turn in the usually polite confines of the Long Room, where Usman Khawaja and David Warner exchanged words with jeering members.
Marylebone Cricket Club later suspended the membership of three individuals pending an investigation.
Appearing on LBC Radio, Ms Frazer was asked by presenter Nick Ferrari: “Were Australia on the right path to behave the way they did in the stumping of Jonny Bairstow, Secretary of State?”
She responded: “I know that tensions are very high about the Ashes, and people who follow cricket, you know, care about the result very deeply. Look, we’ve got three tests yet to go and I hope that England turn their fortunes around.”
Mr Ferrari pressed further: “Didn’t quite answer the question with respect, Secretary State. With Australia, should they have called back that particular decision and allowed Jonny Bairstow to stay?”
Ms Frazer responded: “Well, I do think lots of people around the country will have views about that…”
But Mr Ferrari said: “WelI I want to hear your view, Secretary of State. That’s twice you’ve swerved my bowling. So I’m coming down for a third time, coming down from the pavilion end. Should they have called back that decision?”
The Cabinet minister replied: “Well, look… The Ashes is very, very competitive. Everyone wants to win who’s in it, so I understand, you know, why decisions…”
Mr Ferrari refused to give up, asking: “There are six balls in an over. That was my third. Here comes my fourth. Should the Australian captain have said, ‘Hey, hold on. No. I don’t want him to go, in that way.’ Secretary of State? Here’s the fourth ball.”
Ms Frazer responded: “No, it’s not. Look, I understand why you ask me, Nick, but you know, that’s what they did. It was very competitive and I think we now need to look forward to the next tests. And I’m wishing England all the best of luck.”
However, fellow Conservative MP Bob Blackman, a senior member of the Lords and Commons cricket team did not shy away from making his views clear.
Spinner Mr Blackman, MP for Harrow East, told The Standard: “They have been found guilty of cheating in the past.
“This further tarnishes the reputation of the Australian cricket team.”
He believes that in the spirit of game, Australia’s captain Pat Cummins should have withdrawn the appeal.
Stokes insists England can still pull off an Ashes victory against the odds, despite going 2-0 down in the five-match series.
