Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar did not accept England captain Ben Stokes’ offer for a draw with 15 overs left on Day 5 of the 4th Test. Now, the entire squabble has come to light.
The final moments of the fourth Test between India and England at Old Trafford saw drama unfold as England captain Ben Stokes offered to call the match a draw with 15 overs left in the day. However, the Indian camp refused to walk off, with all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar both nearing centuries. Stokes proceeded to hand the ball to Harry Brook, who bowled dollies at Jadeja and Sundar, resulting in the batters to race to their centuries. Now, the exact conversation between the two teams has been released by broadcaster Sky Sports Cricket.
With 15 overs left in the day, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar were batting on 89 and 81 respectively. The draw was a foregone conclusion, and England captain Ben Stokes offered to end the match there. However, the Indian team refused.
Here’s how the conversation between the hosts and the visitors played out:
Jofra Archer: If you wanted a hundred, you should have batted like it earlier.
Zak Crawley: Is it your decision? We’ll bowl bouncers at you if you want.
Ravindra Jadeja: You have been doing that all day.
Ben Duckett: How long do you need, an hour? If you get to 100, he (Sundar) gets to 90, and then we have to wait for him. It’s a bit late in the day for it.
Jadeja: I can’t say ‘ok, I don’t want to play’
Ben Stokes: You want to get a Test hundred against Harry Brook and Ben Duckett?
Jadeja: I can’t do anything.
Stokes: Yes, you can, you can walk off.
Indian all-rounder Washington Sundar shared his emotions after scoring his maiden Test century in Manchester and said that every century matters but this one means a lot and revealed coach Gautam Gambhir‘s message of “fighting through the entire day” in an effort to secure a draw.
Sundar, who came to bat at No. 5 for the first time, scored an unbeaten 101 in an unbroken 203-run fifth-wicket stand with Ravindra Jadeja (107 not out). The duo’s brilliant stand for the fifth wicket saw India through to complete a draw.
“It feels very special. Honestly, it’s difficult to put this feeling into words because a Test hundred is something truly unique. Every century matters, but this one means a lot. I got the opportunity to bat at No. 5, and my only focus was to fight for an entire day. That was the only message from the coach as well. I’m just really glad we managed to draw this match,” Sundar said on JioHotstar.
Source: https://sports.ndtv.com/england-vs-india-2025/if-you-wanted-a-hundred-what-was-said-in-ben-stokes-ravindra-jadeja-handshake-row-entire-argument-revealed-8968329
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