Ben Stokes Finds Support Amid Storm Over Handshake Row: "Sitting In Lounge..."

Former England captain Kevin Pietersen backed Ben Stokes in the 'handshake' controversy during Day 5 of the fourth Test match against India at Old Trafford. With 15 overs left to play, Stokes offered to end the match in a draw but his 'handshake' was not accepted by Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar as both of them were close to their centuries. Stokes and Co were not pleased with the incident but it proved to be the right call for the India batters as both Jadeja and Sundar went on to reach their respective centuries. While Stokes came under a lot of fire for his behaviour, Pietersen has come out in support of the England captain and said that it is easy to judge while 'sitting in your lounge watching'.

"2 days fielding and no result on the cards - you WANT to get off the field! You cannot have a pop at Ben Stokes for his frustration. Very easy to have a pop at him when you're sitting in your lounge watching. You're NOT in the battle. Leave the men in the ring to be emotional," he posted on X (formerly Twitter).

2 days fielding and no result on the cards - you WANT to get off the field!
You cannot have a pop at Ben Stokes for his frustration.
Very easy to have a pop at him when you're sitting in your lounge watching.
You're NOT in the battle. Leave the men in the ring to be emotional.

— Kevin Pietersen(@KP24) July 28, 2025

Meanwhile, Sanjay Manjrekar stated that India's fighting batting effort at Old Trafford to salvage a draw from the jaws of a defeat has forced England captain Ben Stokes to rethink his leadership style.

After the gritty knocks from KL Rahul (90) and the captain Shubman Gill (103), all-rounders Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja stood tall against the English bowling attack and scored individual centuries before agreeing on a draw on Sunday. It was one of the greatest fightbacks from the Indian team after being two down without a single run on the board.

The frustration of India's comeback in the match was visible on England players and captain Stokes, who looked tired and had no plan left to take India's remaining wickets.

"I think that was the perfect summation of what happened - a draw that feels like a win. And yet again, this young Indian batting line-up continues to surprise. You expected KL Rahul and Shubman Gill to be the partnership to watch out for, but that stand was broken early in the day. However, India keeps producing warriors every Test match - this time, it was Washington Sundar who stood tall. Fantastic batting once again. In the end, what we saw was frustration from a team that is used to dominating at home," Manjrekar said on JioHotstar.

"It's rare to see England settle for a draw twice in the Bazball era. Remember, this is the first time Ben Stokes abandoned his principle of batting first after winning the toss - and it happened against India. This draw, without any weather intervention, came against India. That says a lot. India has forced Stokes to rethink his approach and leadership style," he added.

(With IANS inputs)

Topics mentioned in this article

Ben Stokes Kevin Pietersen Washington Sundar Ravindra Jadeja England Cricket Team India Cricket Team England vs India, 2025 Cricket