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Former England cricketers Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain criticized the Three Lions for repeatedly complaining to the umpires about the condition of the ball during the third day of the Lord's Test against India. The Dukes ball has been making headlines since the beginning of the ongoing match in London, but for all the wrong reasons.
During the second day of the match, both Shubman Gill and Mohammed Siraj were involved in a heated exchange with the on-field umpire after he had refused to change the ball even though it was providing no help to the bowlers despite being taken just a few overs before. Thanks to next to no movement of the ball, the duo of Jamie Smith and Brydon Carse formed a crucial partnership of 84 runs. This stand saw them post a good total of 387 on the board in the first innings.
Archer complained about the ball during the first session of Day 3
Then as the action resumed on Day 3, it was England's turn to complain about the ball's condition. Jofra Archer was seen asking the umpire to change the ball during the 46th over of India's innings. On-field umpire Sharafuddoula did test the ball with the rings, however it went through safely, leading him to tell Archer to continue the play. The pacer didn't look happy at all with the decision.
Both Atherton and Hussain were in the commentary box at that time and criticized England for their repeated complains regarding the ball. They also weren't satisfied with how the umpires were managing the game on the field and the former even stated that it should be the umpires who should determine if the ball is fit to play or not.
"We were chatting an hour before the start of play, which is when Williamson's masterclass was going on. I think we both agreed that this should be the umpire's domain. The umpires are the ones who should determine whether the ball is fit to play. Keep the players out of it," Atherton stated.
"Absolutely! They've got the rings in their pockets. A wicket or a drinks break, you check the ball. Take the players completely out of it. The players are trying to get the ball changed because this one is doing nothing," Hussain added.
Meanwhile, a century from KL Rahul and a valiant knock of 74 from Rishabh Pant got India into a strong position by the end of the first session. However, both of them would lose their wickets in short intervals, restricting the visitors to 254/5 at one stage.
However, a valiant partnership of 72 between Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy got India over the 300-run mark and close to England's first-inning total. Though the latter did lose his wicket to Ben Stokes for 30 runs, the former reached his half-century later on. With the duo of Jadeja and Washington Sundar now on the crease, India have a great chance to take a valiuable lead ahead of England's second innings.
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