Stuart Broad thought it “very odd”. And you wouldn’t blame Australians if they were feeling just a little left out of all the fun, while England were getting dragged by Indians at cricket, in a series described as Alt Ashes – notably not a mere opening act to the Ashes this winter. But ABC Sport took it to the next level, putting Ben Stokes’ offer to shake hands for a draw at Manchester, and how it got declined, to the vox populi test.
At rugby union’s British & Irish Lions Test over the weekend, at the Stadium Australia in Sydney, the ABC reporter on the ground for the third and last match, stopped visiting Lions fans if they would settle for a draw and shake hands on it, if Ben Stokes was offering them one. “I’m gonna see if I can get someone to shake the hand on a drawn series, Ben Stokes style,” he declared, as assorted British fans in their red jerseys and lion headgear were randomly stopped and posed the question. The context wasn’t clear on whether he meant at cricket, at the third of the rugby games with the Wallabies, or in sport or in life, in general.
Of the 80,000 crowd, a considerable was the red clad British & Irish fans. A clip with 16 fans was posted, and 16 of them flatly declined a hypothetical draw offer, Stokes style.
Some of the responses:
Fan 1: (withdrawing hand) no…No…NOOOO (friends guffaw)
Fan 2: with rabbit head gear: No way.
Fans 3&4: draw? Tsk..naw
Fan 5: with lion beanie cap: Nah
Fan couple: no, absolutely not
Fan 1 again: Rugby don’t like draws. Somebody has to win.
Fan 8: nah,it’s not what it’s all about.
Fan 9: No. You play to win, man. Or you’ve been beat.
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Fans 10 & 11: with lion whiskers and nostrils: You’ve got to win. That’s what we came all the way here for…
Fans 12&13: What’s the point of competition if you call it a draw?
Fans 14&15: no chance
Fan 16: It can’t be a draw, can it?
While Stokes trying to tend to his knackered, tired, breaking bowling unit after Jadeja and Washington defied them in Test 4, was roundly criticised at the constant haranguing by the fielding back while the Indians approached milestone centuries post ensuring a draw, the brave captain also found some sympathy from fast bowlers around the world. Dale Steyn weighed in on one of the flashpoints of the series and said there was nothing wrong in Stokes offering an exit. But the whimsy decision and drama divided the cricket world, with many not comprehending why the English wouldn’t allow the battling Indians to get deserving tons, given the English couldn’t dismiss them and take 10 wickets.
So even as the fifth Test raged on and find its denouement with Siraj & his pack actually taking the 10 wickets with tireless bowling, Aussies – gleeful at England and Stokes’ misery, saw an opportunity. Remember, Stokes is a ridiculously talented born-Kiwi, playing for England and a lined up Ashes target as opposition captain. Shots were fired early. Albeit in a totally unrelated sport, though both matches get called Tests.
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The post with 644K views, though not a certified banger, ended up annoying Broad who called it odd. And the Lions fans didn’t have a great day either.
First the match was delayed in the second half for 30 minutes, by a massive lightning storm. Then the Wallabies inflicted a bruising 22-12 win, only the 7th win for Australia over Lions in rugby, and the first time the home team were not pummelled 3-0 in a series since 1904, as per ABC. The glorious weekend stretched to cricket where Indians beat back the English in the fifth for a 2-2 draw, seen as a win by the Aussies.
