Handshake-Gate: Stokes, England & The Draw That Sparked Outrage

The India vs England Test series has been anything but boring, but the drama in the fourth Test at Old Trafford hit a whole new level. What started as a hard-fought match spiraled into a major controversy, now famously dubbed "handshake-gate." It all came down to a simple gesture—a handshake offered too early—that has since sparked a firestorm of criticism from cricket legends and fans around the world.

Key Highlights

• ✓ In the fourth Test, England's captain Ben Stokes offered a draw, which India's batters declined.
• ✓ Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar went on to score their centuries after the tense exchange.
• ✓ Former India star Robin Uthappa blasted England's aggressive reaction as "so unnecessary."
• ✓ Cricket legend Greg Chappell called the English team's behavior "childish and shocking."
• ✓ Aussie spinner Nathan Lyon had a brutally simple take: "Get them out. Don't let them get a hundred."

What Exactly Happened at Old Trafford?

So, let's set the scene. It's the final moments of the fourth Test. India's Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar are at the crease, both tantalizingly close to scoring personal centuries—a massive milestone for any cricketer. With a draw looking inevitable, England's captain, Ben Stokes, decided to walk over and offer a handshake. In cricket, that's the signal to agree to a draw and end the match.

But Jadeja and Sundar weren't having it. They had earned the right to be there and were determined to reach their hundreds. They politely declined the offer. Here’s where things went south. Instead of a simple "okay, carry on," the situation escalated. Stokes, along with teammates Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, became quite vocal and visibly frustrated. Crawley later even called the incident "embarrassing."

Despite the pressure and the on-field chatter, Jadeja and Sundar kept their composure, ignored the antics, and went on to score their respective centuries. It was a moment of pure resilience. The match, as expected, ultimately ended in a draw, but the fallout from that tense exchange was just beginning.

A Chorus of Criticism: Legends Weigh In

The cricket world did not hold back. T20 World Cup winner Robin Uthappa was particularly incensed by England's behavior. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he laid out exactly why it felt so wrong. He acknowledged that a conversation is fine, but the reaction after the refusal was what crossed the line. "The likes of Duckett, Crawley for crying out loud mate, what are you doing? It was so unnecessary," he said.

Uthappa brilliantly compared it to a situation many Indians find familiar. "It just felt weirdly familiar to us Indians, where we have been told what to do... What the heck man?" he explained. He then dropped a fantastic analogy: "It's like saying 'you can't eat non-vegetarian food because it doesn't agree with our morals'. It's exactly like that... We can happily co-exist." It’s a powerful point about respecting others' choices within the rules of the game.

💡 What's Interesting: Former India head coach Greg Chappell was even more scathing in his ESPNCricinfo column, describing England's actions as "childish and shocking." He noted the "petulance was jarring" for a team that prides itself on the moral high ground of the "Bazball" era.

The View from Down Under

It wasn't just Indian legends who were critical. Australia's veteran spinner, Nathan Lyon, offered a refreshingly blunt and straightforward take that cut through all the noise. When asked about the situation, his response was simple and brutal. "Get them out. Don't let them get a hundred," Lyon stated. You can almost hear the no-nonsense Aussie attitude in that quote. It’s a cricketer’s solution: if you don’t want them to score, take their wicket.

Lyon's comment perfectly highlighted the absurdity of England's gamesmanship. Instead of focusing on getting the batters out, they seemed more concerned with dictating the terms of the game's end. This simple logic from one of England's fiercest rivals really put the "moral grandstanding" into perspective. It seems the consensus was clear: India's batters were well within their rights to play on.

Stokes Responds: Regrets, Justification, and an Injury Blow

So, what did Ben Stokes have to say for himself amidst all this backlash? He's tried to play it down, framing it as a non-issue. "We were right to offer the handshake, they were also right to say: 'No, we want our hundreds'," he admitted. Stokes urged everyone to move on, saying, "Let's try our best not to focus too much on a 20-minute period of cricket when it's been such a good series so far."

He added a little context, suggesting that it's "a very easy thing to comment on when you've not been out on the field for 250 overs." While he claims both he and the Indian team are "over it," the incident has clearly left a mark on the series. Unfortunately for Stokes, his problems didn't end with the PR battle. He's been ruled out of the final Test with a grade-three muscle tear in his shoulder, an injury aggravated during that very match.

The recovery is estimated to take six to ten weeks, putting him in a race against time for the Ashes. It's a huge blow for England, who will now be led by Ollie Pope in the crucial fifth Test at The Oval. Stokes says playing was a risk "way too high," so his focus now shifts to rehab and the winter schedule. It's a tough break for the captain, whose summer has ended on a sour note both on and off the field.

Beyond the Drama: Pitches, Respect, and the Final Test

Despite the "handshake-gate" and another "absolutely unnecessary" argument between India's coach Gautam Gambhir and the Oval's head groundskeeper, India's captain Shubman Gill insists the relationship between the two teams is "fantastic." He chalks up the on-field tension to competitiveness, suggesting that once the match is over, "there is mutual respect between both the teams."

Another point of contention has been the state of the pitches. Nathan Lyon also chimed in on this, criticizing the Old Trafford surface where only 24 wickets fell in five days. He argued that cricket needs a better competition between bat and ball, something fans actually want to see. "They don't really want to watch what happened over in Manchester last week," he said, advocating for the kind of balanced wickets Australia aims to produce.

As we head into the fifth and final Test at The Oval, England holds a 2-1 lead. But India has a golden opportunity to level the series and share the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. With Stokes out and tensions high, it's setting up to be a dramatic conclusion to a series that has had no shortage of talking points.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, the handshake controversy at Old Trafford has become more than just a minor incident. While Ben Stokes might see it as a "20-minute period," for many, it's raised serious questions about sportsmanship and the supposed moral high ground of England's "Bazball" approach. The passionate and unified criticism from respected figures like Uthappa, Chappell, and Lyon shows that this struck a nerve in the cricket community.

India's players showed immense character to ignore the noise and achieve their personal milestones, while England was left to defend its actions. With Stokes now sidelined by injury and the series on the line, this contentious chapter has added an extra layer of spice to what is already a must-win final Test for India. It's a reminder that in cricket, how you play the game is often just as important as the final result.