‘I would be disappointed’ - Ravichandran Ashwin reflects on being in Bairstow’s shoes following controversial dismissal

The Ashes 2023 has gotten off to the worst of starts for hosts England. After losing the first Test match by the barest of margins, England failed to make a comeback in the second game as they lost by 43 runs after the Aussies dominated them throughout the five days of play.

However, one of the most talked about moments from the second Test was the controversial dismissal of English wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow. It was in the 52nd over of the second innings when Bairstow walked out of the crease after leaving a delivery from Cameron Green, it was at this moment that Alex Carey saw the opportunity and threw the ball at the stumps which led to Bairstow’s dismissal.

England were looking to chase down a target of 371 runs to win the second Test of the Ashes 2023, and despite Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes playing magnificent knocks, England fell short and lost the second Test by 43 runs.

The dismissal led to major controversies as many opined that the incident was against the spirit of the game and Australia should have withdrawn their appeal. Seeing a tweet by a user where he pointed out the double standards of the fans over criticizing Ashwin for running out non-strikers were applauding Carey for his presence of mind. 

Seeing the tweet, Ashwin opined that the presence of mind of the player should be appreciated for creating the chances rather than him being criticized for interfering with the spirit of the game.

Sorry to bang on about this but I do love the game.. To my friend @ashwinravi99 and all those who believe that Johnny Bairstow was fairly OUT .. I have a simple Qs: would you be happy if you were given out in that way? That’s the real test. Do unto others what you would do to… https://t.co/Hrpi0mqFYq

— Rajdeep Sardesai (@sardesairajdeep) July 4, 2023

In the same context, the veteran Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin took to Twitter to react to a tweet where the renowned Indian journalist and anchor, Rajdeep Sardesai, asked him how he would feel about getting out as happened to Bairstow on Day 5 of the second Ashes Test.

I would be disappointed, very disappointed, in fact gutted with myself for getting out like that🙏 https://t.co/aB8EjoKoiS

— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) July 4, 2023

"I would be disappointed, very disappointed, in fact gutted with myself for getting out like that," Ashwin tweeted.

Australian players got involved in a verbal altercation with MCC crowd post winning the Lord's Test

Furthermore, the controversial dismissal was not well received by the fans as the entire Australian team were booed by the Marleybone Cricket Club (MCC) members as they walked back in for lunch. Australian batter Usman Khawaja was also seen engaged in a verbal altercation with one of the members in the long room. Moreover, David Warner was also a victim of the crowd's rage. In the aftermath, a few culprits were suspended by the MCC as they had challenged players' security post the match.