Veteran India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja had an on-field exchange with England's Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes during Day 2 of the Edgbaston Test. The incident happened in the 89th over when Woakes called out Jadeja for running on the middle part of the pitch. Prior to this, the umpire had already warned Jadeja for the same so Woakes certainly wasn't happy with the Indian batter for repeating the same mistake.
Stokes and Jadeja were involved in a heated exchange on Day 2
Soon after, Stokes would also join the drama and exchange a few words with Jadeja on the pitch. Seeing the temperatures flare, the umpire stepped in and was seen warning Jadeja in a video that made rounds on social media.
In the video, Stokes can also be seen blaming Jadeja for running on the danger part of the pitch on purpose. He said, "Look what you have done, mate." Jadeja defended his actions, stating that he was focused on batting and didn't make the mistake deliberately. "But I was coming from here. I won't bowl there anyway. Why would I do that? My focus is on batting?" The India all-rounder opened up on the exchange following the end of Day 2 and clarified that he didn't make the mistake intentionally.
"He feels that I am making it rough for myself. In fact, he was making it rougher by using fast bowlers. I didn't have to make it rough. He was repeatedly telling the umpire that I was running on the wicket. But that was not my intention. I ran here and there a few times. But that was in his mind. Hopefully, if we get a chance tomorrow, we will try to bowl in good areas. And we will try to play as well as we can," Jadeja told reporters.
Meanwhile, Jadeja played a vital knock of 89 in India's first inning at Edgbaston and his enormous partnership of 203 runs with captain Shubman Gill massively helped the visitors in crossing the 400-run mark. Though he missed out a well-deserved hundred, the 36-year-old's performance with the bat was undoubtedly brilliant and he will now be hoping to contribute with the ball as both teams take the field for Day 3.