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Ben Stokes asked some hard questions amid handshake gate at Manchester: ‘What if Duckett was batting on 90…’
Parthiv Patel reckons Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar should have continued batting and not gone off the field.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel reckons Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar should have continued batting and not gone off the field even after scoring their centuries on Day 5 of the Manchester Test against England. Jadeja and Sundar formed an unbeaten 203-run stand for the fifth wicket to help India stay alive in the series against all odds. However, a fantastic battle between bat and ball was marred by the handshake drama in the final few minutes on the final day of the fourth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
In the final few minutes on Day 5, England captain Ben Stokes threw in the towel as he approached Jadeja and Sundar to shake hands and call the game off early. However, the duo were nearing their tons, hence it's not surprising that they chose to go for milestones.
Stokes and the rest of the England side did not take this refusal kindly, as they had some nasty things to say. The England captain brought Harry Brook into the attack, and he bowled one full toss after another, sort of mocking Jadeja and Sundar.
Parthiv Patel believes India should have batted on further. He also raised a question about what England would have done in the same situation had Ben Duckett been batting on 90 at that time.
"England did things their own way. Their effort was clear — they wanted to bowl India out and win the game. But when they realised that wasn’t possible, they put their weapons down and acknowledged that India had played very well. At the same time, India did what they wanted to do in their own way — two players worked really hard, batted brilliantly, and both deserved to score centuries," said Parthiv on JioHotstar.
"The only question I have is this: if Ben Duckett had been batting on 90 in the same situation and the opposition offered a handshake, would England have accepted it? I am very curious to know this, especially with so many talking about the ‘spirit of the game.’ In my opinion, the game should have continued till the end of the day, even if the Indian batters completed their centuries," he added.
'Looked like India could lose the Test'
Parthiv Patel then praised Sundar and Jadeja's resolve. At one stage, it looked like India could lose the Test when KL Rahul and Shubman Gill lost their wickets in the opening session on Day 5.
"If 15 overs were still left, India should have batted because they worked extremely hard. Before lunch on Day 4, when two wickets fell, it looked like India could lose the Test on Day 5," said Parthiv.
"But from that point to batting through 143 overs is an incredible effort. So, I believe what India did was absolutely right — though personally, I feel they could have batted a bit more," he added.
England lead the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2-1, but India have a chance of levelling the series in the fifth and final Test at the Oval, beginning Thursday, July 31.
