England National Cricket Team opening batsman Zak Crawley’s cheating attempt was caught by the on-field umpire during the Manchester Test against the India National Cricket Team.
The on-field umpire issued a stern warning to Zak Crawley after the Englishman attempted to induce reverse-swing on Day 5 of the fourth Test match of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025.
Also Read: The Great Indian Escape: Twitter reacts as Jadeja, Gill, Sundar, Rahul draw Manchester Test vs England
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Zak Crawley busted! Umpire catches him red-handed in the Manchester Test
On Day 5 of the Test match at Old Trafford in Manchester, India showcased an exceptional batting performance to avoid a crushing defeat at the hands of England.
From 0/2 on Day 4, captain Shubman Gill and opener KL Rahul led India to recovery with their batting performances. Gill scored 103 runs before falling to Jofra Archer, while Rahul scored 90 runs before being dismissed by Ben Stokes.
After the dismissal of star batters, all-rounders Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja joined forces to bail India out of trouble.
The duo displayed an unbelievable performance and frustrated England, steering India into a lead. England bowlers were totally exhausted as they were unable to get a breakthrough with the Indian all-rounders going great guns, and the ball was getting softer.
Meanwhile, in the 122nd over during the third session, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja took a single off Liam Dawson, and the ball went towards Zak Crawley.
Zak Crawley deliberately aimed his throw towards the side pitch rather than directly at the stumps, and the ball landed exactly on the rough patch beside the main strip, kicking up dust before bouncing to Jamie Smith behind the stumps.
This attempt by Zak Crawley to disturb the pitch and ball saw the on-field umpire immediately intervene and warn the Englishman not to repeat his act. “Crawley thinks he has gotten away with it. He hasn’t,” Nasser Hussain said on-air.
Incredible from Gill – Stuart Broad
Speaking on Sky Sports, pace-bowling legend Stuart Broad hailed India skipper Shubman Gill for his exceptional century at Old Trafford. He elaborated:
“Incredible from Gill, particularly coming into the series it being his first as Indian captain, one of the most pressurised positions in world cricket..To play like he has been absolutely superb.
“Yesterday was actually probably his most impressive innings, coming in 0-2 having been in the field – your brain switched on for 160-odd overs.
“To be able to calm it all down, survive that period pre-lunch, and then build that partnership with Rahul was wonderful. Yesterday was all mental, about as strong as you can be.”
It was great to see them fight out it there for the rest of the team – Dinesh Karthik
Former India National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik was also mightily impressed with the fight displayed by KL Rahul and Shubman Gill in the Manchester Test. He elaborated:
“There has been many a team that has travelled here and been 0-2, behind in the game, and just given up. What these two guys [Gill and Rahul] did is not just about this game, it is for the future as well.
“The determination, the courage they showed and the way they applied themselves through their partnership was a very heartening sign for Indian cricket in general. It was great to see them fight out it there for the rest of the team.”
