Bring Flintoff If You Dare!’ — Ashwin Explodes After Stokes’ Harry Brook Taunt!
A Test match that looked set to end in calm waters erupted into controversy in the final hour — and now Ravichandran Ashwin has torched England captain Ben Stokes for a jibe that didn’t sit well with Indian fans.
With India holding firm at 344/4 on Day 5 in Manchester, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar were inching toward their centuries, having survived over 330 balls and faced every challenge England’s bowlers threw at them. But just when it seemed the match would conclude on a respectful note, Ben Stokes walked up to the Indian batters, suggesting they call it a draw.
When Jadeja and Sundar declined — both sitting in the 90s — Stokes, in what many saw as a sarcastic swipe, said:
“You want to get a Test hundred against Harry Brook?”
That one sentence triggered a firestorm — and Ashwin didn’t hold back.
“You want to make a hundred against Harry Brook? No, brother, he wants to make a hundred. Please bring Steve Harmison. Bring Flintoff,” Ashwin fumed on his YouTube channel.
“That’s your mistake for giving the ball to Harry Brook, not the batter’s.”
Ashwin didn’t just defend his teammates — he dismantled Stokes’ logic point by point.
“Since morning, he played your Archer, played your Matthew Hoggard, played Darren Gough, played Andrew Flintoff—played all your bowlers, whoever you guys gave, he played them. Now when it’s heading for a draw, after working hard for hours, he should walk away from a century because you’re frustrated?”
The duo of Sundar and Jadeja had faced 334 balls between them and stitched a 203-run unbeaten partnership. They stood tall against England’s entire bowling attack — and yet, were met with criticism for not accepting a premature handshake.
Ashwin didn’t mince words, labeling the episode a classic case of “double standards.”
“You shake hands, then go complain. You don’t make a hundred and go cry — but someone else working hard for his hundred is somehow wrong? What sort of logic is that?”
The off-spinner was particularly upset with how Test runs were being mocked. He made it clear — runs are runs, no matter who the bowler is.
“Of course he wants a Test hundred. These are Test runs. They matter. And he earned them.”
As the controversy continues to simmer, Ashwin’s fiery response has only added more heat to what could’ve been a routine draw. With the final Test just days away, the tension between India and England isn’t just on the scoreboard — it’s personal now
