‘Stay out of it’ – Atherton criticizes Akash Deep’s send-off to Duckett on Day 2

Akash Deep‘s dismissal of England starter Ben Duckett on Day 2 of the fifth Test at The Oval drew criticism from veteran cricketers Michael Atherton and Ravi Shastri.

After scoring 224 in the first innings, India hit back with the ball. A strong start from Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett got England going. Duckett hit 43 off 38 balls, finding boundaries easily.

He reportedly made fun of Akash Deep, adding, “You cannot get me out in here.”

Dhruv Jurel caught Duckett behind in the 13th over. The Indian pacer pumped his fist in delight and moved up to Duckett, placing an arm around his shoulder, and talking. Atherton and Shastri didn’t appreciate this gesture.

“Can you imagine doing that to Viv Richards or any number? I would have hated that. If a bowler puts his arms around me, having just dismissed me stay out of the way. It’s a serious point actually that, as I say, it seemed good natured and I like to give cricketers maximum leeway on the field because it is an emotional, passionate game. I like to see them getting stuck in. I don’t like the match referees getting involved but it’s a non-contact sport and something like that will end in problems. So I think the match referee has to stamp that out,” he said on Sky Sports.

Even though Duckett didn’t appear agitated, the occurrence can nevertheless be deemed a violation of Clause 2.12 of the ICC Code of Conduct, which addresses inappropriate physical contact. Notably, Akash Deep was pulled away by KL Rahul’s intervention. Shastri, meanwhile, shared his thoughts on the situation and advocated for no physical contact.

“If Athers had put his hand around me getting me out, I’d have said, ‘Get out of the way! No, no physical contact. Because what it can lead to. I mean Duckett at that moment of time might have been thinking something else. Another player with a feisty temperament wouldn’t have liked it and could have done something which he would have regretted. Just because it’s being watched by millions around the globe and the match referee will be forced to take action because of the rules and the rulebook,” he said.