If umpires don’t stop Matthew Wade, I’m going to shut him up: Ian Chappell

Day 3 of the fifth and final Ashes Test witnessed tempers flaring at the Oval. Ben Stokes was taunted over his Bristol street fight after Australia skipper Tim Paine was heard on the stump mic uttering the word ‘Bristol’ as Stokes was batting — a sledge easily in reference to the England allrounder’s brawl two years ago. Stokes too was overheard calling David Warner ““a f***ing prick” as drama enveloped the third day’s play.

Former Australia captain Ian Chappell has lashed out at Australia’s cricketers for their incessant chat and demanded that umpires’ intervention. “It’s about time the bloody umpires intervened,” he said on Sports Sunday.

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“Every time I read it’s part of the game, I think it’s the greatest load of rubbish I’ve ever heard. The batsman is entitled to peace and quiet when he’s out there batting.”

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England captain Joe Root and Matthew Wade too were spoken to by the umpires. Wade, now a fielder, with Paine taking possession of the wicketkeeper’s gloves, also took aim at umpire Kumar Dharmasena when he judged Stokes not out amid an animated lbw appeal. “That’s a shot then,” Wade fumed.

Reaction on Wade’s antics, Chappell said: “If I’m a batsman, I’m not putting up with that. If the umpires don’t step in and stop Matthew Wade, I’m going to bloody shut him up as a batsman.”

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Chappell also believed that sledging in the game should come to an end contrary to what others believe should be allowed to permissible limits. “Administrators, players, umpires, coaches the whole lot (say) ‘it’s all part of the game’. It’s not part of the game. It’s a load of bollocks,” he said.