England Dressing Room Falling Apart? Ben Stokes And Brendon McCullum Contradict Each Other On Jonny Bairstow's Controversial Dismissal

Published - 03 Jul 2023, 05:49 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:15 AM

Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes
Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes (Image Credits: Twitter)

England captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum have come up with contradicting reactions to Jonny Bairstow’s controversial dismissal on the final day of the second Ashes Test against Australia at Lord’s.

While Australia registered a thrilling and hard-fought 43-run win over England, the victory has been very much overshadowed by Bairstow’s contentious dismissal. The incident took place in the very first session of the day and played a key role in deciding the outcome of the match as Australia managed to send Bairstow back for just 10 runs.

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Believing the ball to be dead, Bairstow wandered out of his ground after ducking underneath a short delivery from Cameron Green. Wicketkeeper Alex Carey sensed an opportunity and threw the ball at stumps as he caught Bairstow off guard. Australia appealed for a stumping and the decision was rightly given in their favour.

However, the dismissal has not gone down well with the English cricket fraternity with the English fans and experts questioning Australia’s sportsmanship. The Australia players have been facing severe criticism from the England fans since the incident took place.

Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum contradict each other:

It looks like Bairstow’s dismissal has divided the English dressing room too. Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have come up with completely different reactions to the controversial moment. While McCullum has made it clear that the incident would strain the relationship between the two sides, Stokes has suggested otherwise.

Speaking to Test Match Special after the game ended, McCullum said: “I can’t imagine we’ll be having a beer anytime soon, if that’s what you’re asking. From our point of view, we’ve got three Test matches to try and land some blows and try and win the Ashes and that’s where our focus will be.”

Contradicting his coach, Stokes, who played a stunning knock of 155 runs, hoped that the dismissal would not cause rifts, telling reporters: “I think there’s a bit of emotion in that, to be honest. It’s very soon after something happens. I’m not one to hold a grudge too much. I’ve been through enough to know you can let things go.

“But I think to ruin a tradition that’s been so long, such a big series, I think the feelings from a few people will definitely change as the series goes on. Maybe if we weren’t to do what we always do and have a beer together and say well done, great effort and all that kind of stuff it would be sad. But I think that was just emotion,” he added.

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