How an arm around the shoulder broke cricket’s unwritten code and risked an England-India flashpoint

Perhaps it was the most provocative act of a series that has been full of grumbles and spice.

When Akash Deep put his arm around Ben Duckett after dismissing him at the Oval, he was breaking an unwritten code that frowns on any physical contact on the cricket field.

The exchange may have appeared amicable after Duckett had attempted one reverse pull too many on the second day of the final Test, but Deep was invading the space of the vanquished batter and risked sparking a far worse reaction from Duckett.

There was to be a more aggressive flashpoint as this bad-tempered series nears its end when the usually sanguine Joe Root reacted angrily to something said by India fast bowler Prasidh Krishna on another cracking day of Test cricket. But it was the passive-aggressive arm around the shoulder from fast bowler Deep as Duckett walked towards the dressing room that set cricketing minds boggling at how other, more volatile batters in Test history may have reacted.

One of them — the great former Australian captain Ricky Ponting — was watching in his role as a commentator for Sky Sports and expressed admiration for Duckett’s reaction.

“When I saw it, I thought they must have been mates,” said Ponting on Sky Sports. “You don’t see that every day. Maybe at your local park, but not in a Test match. I like Ben Duckett and the way he plays, but to be able to not react to that? I think I like him even more now.”

Duckett is caught by Jurel off the bowling of Deep (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Phil Tufnell, once a maverick England spin bowler and now a member of the BBC Test Match Special commentary team, believes Deep may join his team-mate Mohammed Siraj in facing disciplinary action for his reaction to dismissing Duckett in this series.

“Can you go up to a batter you’ve just got out and put your arm around him? It’s a bit cheeky,” said Tufnell on the BBC. “I know a few batsmen who, if I’d have got them out and done that, wouldn’t have appreciated it. That might be looked at (by the match referee), I think.”

Marcus Trescothick, now an England assistant coach, showed what he thought about it when the TV cameras panned to him on the sidelines after the Duckett dismissal. Trescothick appeared to gesture that he would have elbowed Deep out of the way had it been him.

“I was just saying there were a lot of players in my time who would have dropped the elbow on him,” said Trescothick afterwards. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bowler do that after getting someone out. You see people have words, but that was different.

“We’ve seen in this series that Ben doesn’t really react. There may be other times when he does, but this time he just put his head down and walked off. There was no need to walk him off in that fashion, but the two teams are still getting on well enough.”

The ‘send-off’ has long been part of cricket and can come in various forms. It can be a gesture or, more commonly, some choice words aimed at the batter by the bowler in his moment of triumph. There can even be some humour at the batter’s expense.

But it is never a necessary act. It could even be described as a cowardly one. The bowler has done his bit and got rid of the opposing batter, who can do nothing but walk back off the field defeated. Why should the bowler compound his foe’s misery?

It is the cricketing equivalent of drawing a foul in football. Or trying to provoke an opponent into a reaction that would get him into far greater trouble than the aggressor.

This series has seen its share of send-offs. The always flammable Siraj was fined 15 per cent of his match fee and given one demerit point for screaming into the face of Duckett in the third Test at Lord’s, with the two then brushing shoulders.

In the same Test, Jofra Archer shouted “charge that one” at Rishabh Pant after taking out his off-stump when England decided to go hard at India in response to Shubman Gill telling Zak Crawley to “grow a pair of f*****g balls” when he wasted time on the third day.

Deep celebrates in front of Duckett (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Siraj certainly has previous. He annoyed Australia’s Travis Head in Adelaide last year when he gestured towards the dressing room after dismissing him in the second Test and was roundly booed by the home crowd throughout the rest of the day.

“I actually jokingly said, ‘Well bowled’, then he pointed me to the sheds and I had my reaction as well,” said Head at the time. “I feel like, the way I play the game, I would like a better reaction than that. I was surprised at what he did. There was no confrontation leading up to it.”

Send-offs can even be bizarre. Ben Stokes was bemused when, in the second Test between West Indies and England in Grenada in 2015, Marlon Samuels stood, with his sun hat clasped to his chest, and saluted when Stokes was dismissed by Devendra Bishoo.

That unusual incident was defended by one of the West Indies’ greatest bowlers, Curtly Ambrose. He usually let his bowling do the talking rather than give batters send-offs. “There’s nothing wrong with a little bantering,” said Ambrose, then the West Indies bowling coach. “As long as it doesn’t go over the top, I’m fine with it. I think it’s more friendly than anything else. He gave a salute. Is that a sign of respect? I don’t know, but I’m hoping so.”

Jimmy Anderson did not have to say a word to make his point after he was sledged by the non-striker Mitchell Johnson during the third Ashes Test in Perth in 2010. “Why are you chirping so much? You’re not taking any wickets,” said Johnson immediately before Anderson bowled Ryan Harris, turned to his tormentor with arms outstretched, and simply put his finger to his lips.

Deep did have cause to be irritated at the Oval. Duckett and Zak Crawley had made an explosive start to England’s reply to India’s 224 all out and were on course for the fastest 100-run opening partnership in Test cricket when they raced to 92 off 12.5 overs.

But after reverse pulling Deep for six and somehow scooping a Siraj yorker for six in his 43 off 38 balls, Duckett attempted the right-handed pull again but edged to Dhruv Jurel.

More surprising was Root’s reaction as he ran past Krishna after guiding the India bowler through gully for four. Krishna had earlier been forced to apologise to Crawley when he threw the ball at him and hit his bat as he stood motionless in his crease. He had then said something else to Root during the over, which brought such a furious response.

Root is usually one of the calmest characters in cricket. Only once before has he reacted in such animated fashion to something said on the field, and that was when West Indies’ Shannon Gabriel was alleged to have made a homophobic remark in St Lucia in 2019. Gabriel was later charged and banned for four matches after being found guilty of “personal abuse of an opposing player”.

Duckett reacts to Deep (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

“It was nothing,” insisted Trescothick of this latest flashpoint. “Joe just reacted differently to how he’s reacted before. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn’t, but it was nothing to worry about at all.”

Krishna, who once spent a spell playing with Root in the Indian Premier League with Rajasthan Royals, was equally keen to play down the incident, saying: “It was just a little bit of banter and both of us enjoyed it, I think. It was just a small thing.”

Duckett was again involved in an altercation late on the second day after Sai Sudharsan was dismissed when India began their second innings 23 behind England.

Sudharsan had asked for a review, even though he looked plumb lbw to Gus Atkinson, and reacted to something Duckett said as he passed the England huddle. Harry Brook was the unlikely peacemaker coming between them.

A long, dramatic day ended with India, at 75-2 in their second innings, with their noses — and 52 runs — just about in front and with tempers just about in check. Whether they will remain so in the closing days of this fractious series remains to be seen.

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