Former India spinner R Ashwin has criticised England for the draw controversy in the last session of the Old Trafford Test match against India.
Drama unfolded in the closing stages of the Old Trafford Test. After conceding a 311-run first-innings lead, India batted for 138 overs to position themselves for a hard-fought draw. Washington Sundar, promoted to No.5 for the first time, staged a gritty rearguard alongside Ravindra Jadeja, with both batters inching toward centuries.
That’s when tensions flared. With the final hour set to begin, England’s captain signalled to the umpires that they were ready to settle for a draw. But Sundar (80*) and Jadeja (89*) wanted to bat out the remaining hour - a decision that visibly frustrated Ben Stokes.
"Do you really want to score a hundred against Harry Brook?" Stokes remarked sarcastically to Jadeja.
"What do you want me to do? Just walk off?" Jadeja shot back.
Amid the exchange, Zak Crawley chimed in: "You can just shake hands."
Stokes then turned to Harry Brook and Joe Root to bowl in tandem. Brook delivered a string of slow looseners over his next three overs, allowing Jadeja and Sundar to comfortably reach their respective centuries. Finally, after the 143rd over – with Sundar having completed his ton – India agreed to shake hands, ending the match in a dramatic draw.
Stokes’ reaction to India’s refusal to accept an early draw sparked mixed reactions, with R Ashwin becoming the latest to weigh in on the controversy.
Ashwin questions England's double standards
"Have you heard of a term called double standards? They’ve shown the definition of double standards in pictures over the last ten minutes," Ashwin said on his Hindi YouTube channel Ash ki Baat.
"I know you can show your frustration – you can’t win the game, you can fight with your players, you can throw your helmet around, after the match you can hit a wall, you can throw bottles, you can do boxing, you can do anything – and please, do it. But you’re shaking hands, saying, 'I’m frustrated, so you also shouldn’t be happy – don’t make a hundred, just cry and leave.'
"What is this? How can this happen? You’re saying, 'I’m unhappy, so you don’t be happy.' Boss, since morning, he’s played your entire attack – your Archer, your Matthew Hoggard, Darren Gough, Andrew Flintoff – he’s faced every bowler. Now, these two have taken their team towards a draw. They’ve worked hard all day to get here. Should they leave without reaching their hundreds?" Ashwin questioned.
India refused when Ben Stokes offered a handshake when Jadeja and Sundar were nearing their centuries.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) July 28, 2025
R Ashwin was not impressed by the incident and criticised England’s conduct.#ENGvIND #BenStokes pic.twitter.com/RbS8bERjiD
The former India spinner added: "What was your question? 'You want to make a hundred against Harry Brook?’ No, brother, he wants to make a hundred. Bring Steve Harmison, bring Flintoff – did he stop you from that? You’re asking Brook to bowl – that’s your fault, not ours.
"Secondly, I want to ask Zak Crawley – what was your role there? Honestly, I’m disappointed. They should’ve bowled underarm like Trevor Chappell – it would’ve felt even better. Please, don’t talk about the spirit of cricket or sportsmanship. For that, you need to sit somewhere and do something. This is foolhardiness. This is ridiculous."
Ashwin: India were well within their rights
Ashwin believes "India were well within their rights" to bat in the final hour after refusing Stokes' proposal for an early draw. He went further, stating he wished India had batted out the remaining 15 overs.
"Let’s understand the rule first. What’s the rule? If both captains agree the game can’t reach a result, they can shake hands after mandatory overs and call it a draw. One captain wanted to close the game. Why? Two reasons: He didn’t want to tire his bowlers. Understandable. Secondly, ‘I’m frustrated. I’m not happy, so you shouldn’t be happy either – don’t make hundreds.'
"The second point doesn’t fall under the rules. On the first point, India were well within their rights. In fact, if I were India, I’d have stayed there for the remaining hour, played all 15 overs.
"As an international captain – someone who claims to understand the spirit of cricket and acts as its brand ambassador – you should’ve bowled those 15 overs with Brook. It would’ve been a great advertisement for the spirit of cricket. Like Sunil Gavaskar and Rishabh Pant did, it would’ve been even better than that. You’d have been the poster boy of sportsmanship.
"His statement: 'You want to get a hundred against Harry Brook?' Of course, he does; these are Test runs. He wants it, and he deserves it."
Ashwin criticises Crawley and Brook
"And Crawley’s point – 'Is this how you want to make a hundred? Well, you should’ve batted faster if you wanted yours.' That’s his choice when he makes it. If you want to score faster, do it – reach 70 and get out. That’s your game.
"I’m asking Crawley and Stokes: Would you have left your hundreds for the spirit of the game if you were batting at the end? Don’t make us laugh. I don’t even feel like laughing in their faces.
"That’s why I don’t see this as a draw; it’s an Indian win going into the next Test. Who knows what’ll happen there? Both sides will have tired bowlers. But I’m extremely proud of this Indian team. This is a phenomenal draw.
"Massive respect for Joe Root. When he was bowling off-spin at the end, he didn’t act like Brook – because he knows the value of runs. That’s why he’s nearing Sachin Tendulkar’s record for most Test runs.
"But I want to see how many experts will talk about this in the coming three days. During Shubman Gill's incident at Lord’s, everyone asked if it 'distracted' him. Will they ask the same about Crawley and Stokes?
"For Stokes, fine, he was frustrated. But Crawley’s role in this, and Harry Brook bowling like that? It’s laughable."
Both Sundar (101 not out) and Jadeja (107 not out) batted for 332 deliveries for their unbeaten 203-run stand. That’s the seventh-highest number of balls any pair has faced together in a third innings of a Test match in England (where ball-by-ball records are available).
India's 143-over effort ranks as their third-longest batting performance in either the third and fourth innings of a Test in England. Their record remains the 148.2 overs batted at The Oval in 2021, when they scored 466 despite conceding a 99-run first-innings deficit - going on to win the Test by 157 runs.
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