Ricky Ponting says Ben Stokes made a clear mistake after Jonny Bairstow was fired from Lord’s

Ricky Ponting believes England skipper Ben Stokes lacked leadership in a clutch moment as debate continues to rage over Jonny Bairstow’s sacking at Lord’s on day five of the second Ashes Test.

Speaking at the ICC review, the great Australian cricketer also disagreed that Alex Carey’s now infamous stumping on Bairstow went against the grain of the game. spirit of the game.

“The two things that separate these two captains is that Ben Stokes had about three hours to think about his response,” Ponting said.

“Pat Cummins had about 10 seconds to think about what he was going to do and whether he was going to keep it (the call) or not. It’s pretty easy for Ben at the end to sit down and give his point of view.

“But he was actually there as the batting captain of his team. He could have asked on the spot in the heat of the moment.

Ponting believes England skipper Ben Stokes lacked leadership in clutch moment as debate continues over Jonny Bairstow’s sacking in Ashes second Test

In the post-match press conference, Ben Stokes suggested the Australians were disrespecting the sport by being ready to win at Lord’s at all costs.

“If he thought enough, he would have said to the referees, ‘You know, it was over? Did you start moving? Is the ball dead?’ Those were the questions to be answered at the time and not at the end of the game when he said so.

The former champion batsman also said Stokes, his team-mates, supporters and the English media failed to respect the umpires’ decision – which under the rules of cricket was correct.

Moreover, talk of Aussies playing with a win-at-all-costs mentality at home cricket has inflamed the man they call ‘Punter’.

“If we take that Bairstow moment out of this series you would say this series was played with great spirit and everything to do with the spirit of cricket and I don’t think anyone would disagree with that,” added Ponting. .

“But something like this pops up and then this whole question of the spirit of cricket comes up again. I absolutely believe in it because there is more to this decision to enter or exit (Bairstow).

“It’s respecting your opponents, it’s respecting the opposition captain, it’s respecting the referees and it’s respecting the crowd.”

Ponting also pointed out that Bairstow had attempted a similar strain of Marnus Labuschagne earlier in the Lord’s Test when Australia were at the crease, which the English media largely chose not to report.

Stokes believes the controversial dismissal of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s (pictured) went against the spirit of the game – but Ricky Ponting says he missed his best chance to make that point

And thanks to some eagle-eyed social media followers, footage has emerged of Bairstow himself producing a highly controversial fall in a county cricket match in 2014.

THE video shows Samit Patel leaving a wide ball for Nottinghamshire and Bairstow waiting intently, his gloves next to the stumps.

Lightning fast, Yorkshire keeper Bairstow can then be seen pulling the bails as Patel takes his foot off the ground.

When asked after the game if his glove work was questionable, Bairstow’s 12-word answer came back to haunt him nearly a decade later – “it’s within the rules of the game and it’s like That”.

The third Ashes Test at Headingley begins at 8pm AEST on July 6, in what promises to be a fiery atmosphere for tourists – with tight security confirmed – as they seek to win the series.

Australia last won the Ashes on English soil in 2001.