Watch: Labuschagne trolls England on Day 1 of 5th Ashes Test, Anderson reacts in hark back to Lord's controversy

Labuschagne's act at the end of play on Day 1 of the 5th Test is the latest in a long list of pantomimes in this series based on Bairstow's dismissal.

Day 1 of the final Ashes Test came to a rather funny conclusion, as Australian batter Marnus Labuschagne took an opportunity to troll English wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow on the last ball before stumps at the Oval. In a callback to the most controversial and memorable moment of the series, Jonny Bairstow threatened to run-out Labuschagne, who has a tendency to bat outside his crease against seamers to counteract lateral movement.

Bairstow was rather infamously dismissed in the Lord's Test after wandering out of his crease

Bairstow was infamously dismissed during the second innings of the second Test at Lord’s, when he was caught napping and dismissed by a quick-thinking Alex Carey as he wandered out of his crease.

In a video which has gained steam online, Bairstow can be seen threatening to throw the ball at the stumps on the last ball of the day, but Labuschagne was alert and up to the task. The Australian batter went to the extent of making a big show of grounding his bat until the umpire knocked over the bails to signal the end of day’s play.

This incident is the most recent in a series of long pantomimes regarding the act, going back to Stuart Broad making a similarly big show of grounding his bat soon after Bairstow was dismissed. The following Test at Headingley saw Bairstow emphasizing he was standing in his crease.

While there has been a long-winded discussion of the spirit of cricket in relation to this sequence of events, Labuschagne was also spotted swapping words with senior English bowler James Anderson after the incident, with the English camp having repeated multiple times that they wouldn’t stand for taking a wicket in such a manner.

However, keen fans online pointed out that Bairstow had already tried a similar tactic on Day 3 of that Lord’s Test against Labuschagne, but had missed the stumps, with the Aussie batter alert and having regained his crease in any case. While Bairstow couldn’t punish Labuschagne, he was punished for his own laxness in turn.

The Bairstow incident

Bairstow’s wicket at Lord’s was the turning point of that match, allowing Australia to sprint ahead 2-0 and retain the Ashes following the draw at Old Trafford. England are seeking to level the series and are playing for pride at the Oval, but with the Ashes retained, Labuschagne made the best of rubbing salt in the wounds by teasing Bairstow.

The Australian batter will enter day 2 alongside Usman Khawaja, with Australia trailing by 222 runs. Labuschagne found form in good time during the Ashes, scoring an all-important century during the second innings in Manchester after having struggled in the first part of the series.

Australia will look to take a lead on day 2, where the two teams are likely to continue butting heads and making sly digs at one another.