Ricky Ponting schools Ollie Robinson on sledging

However, the match was not without its fair share of controversy as a heated verbal altercation between England’s Ollie Robinson and Australia’s Usman Khawaja dominated the headlines.

Robinson found himself under scrutiny for his verbal outburst towards Khawaja following the dismissal of the Australian batsman in the first innings. In response, Khawaja retaliated with his own choice words directed towards Robinson on the final day of the Test. The incident sparked widespread discussion on social media and drew the attention of former cricketers, further intensifying the scrutiny.

Defending his actions, Robinson referenced the on-field conduct of former Australian captain Ricky Ponting, suggesting that similar behaviour from Australians had been accepted in the past. Ponting, however, responded with a sense of surprise, remarking that he found it “unusual” for Robinson to mention his name.

Ponting advised Robinson to focus on the present and emphasised that the England pacer needed to learn quickly about the challenges of playing against a formidable Australian cricket team in the Ashes series.

“If he is sitting back thinking about me, then no wonder he bowled like the way that he did in that game, if he’s worried about what I did 15 years ago. He’ll learn pretty quickly that if you’re going to talk to Australian cricketers in an Ashes series, then you want to be able to back it up with your skills,” Ponting said.

The tensions between Robinson and Khawaja reached a boiling point on Day 5, with a verbal exchange that required intervention from experienced England bowler James Anderson to defuse the situation.

Updated: 22 Jun 2023, 01:53 PM IST