England Player Stepping On Ball vs India Sparks "Ball-Tampering" Debate

With India currently facing England in their ongoing second Test match at the Lord's, former cricketers Virender Sehwag and Aakash Chopra led questions if the hosts had taken part in ball-tampering. Replays showed an English player stopping the ball with his spikes after the first one had kicked it with his shoe. The incident created quite an uproar among cricket fans on Twitter. Pacer Stuart Broad, who is out of the series with injury, gave his take on the incident in an attempt to clear the air regarding his teammates.

"Yeh kya ho raha hai (What is happening here). Is it ball tampering by Eng ya covid preventive measures", tweeted Sehwag.

Yeh kya ho raha hai.
Is it ball tampering by Eng ya covid preventive measures pic.twitter.com/RcL4I2VJsC

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) August 15, 2021

Meanwhile, Chopra wrote, "Ball tampering, eh? #EngvInd".

Ball tampering, eh? #EngvInd

— Wear a Mask. Stay Safe, India (@cricketaakash) August 15, 2021

Broad came to the rescue of his teammates, by replying to a question on the social media platform.

A Twitter user asked him about his comments on the incident. The veteran cricketer went on to explain that one of the player was trying to "nutmeg" the other. It is a term in football for when a player manages to get the ball to go between an opponent's legs.

"My comments are- Woody tried to nut meg Burnsy by tapping the ball through his legs (a very common occurrence) & he missed and kicked the ball there by accident. Instead of screenshotting the pic, watch the video- quite plain & easy to see", Broad replied.

My comments are- Woody tried to nut meg Burnsy by tapping the ball through his legs (a very common occurrence) & he missed and kicked the ball there by accident. Instead of screenshotting the pic, watch the video- quite plain & easy to see

— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) August 15, 2021

Here are the other reactions:

Ball tampering seems to be spirit of the game, Mankad doesn't.

— Udit (@udit_buch) August 15, 2021

Now they don't have their favourite weather to assist them.. new method #INDvENG #balltampering pic.twitter.com/C54G2VmE5v

— mark rufus (@markrufus007) August 15, 2021

#balltampering
Ball Tampering By England Cricket team pic.twitter.com/CtFWWIO4J6

— Himanshu Bhardwaj (@Himanshu4038581) August 15, 2021

Currently, India have taken a lead of over 100 runs in their second innings with Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane toiling hard in English conditions.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team England Cricket Team Virender Sehwag Aakash Chopra Stuart Broad England vs India, 2021 England vs India, 2nd Test Cricket