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'It's never their fault. If they bowl a bad ball, they blame the shape': Cook explodes over 'moaning' about Dukes balls
Alastair Cook wasn't too pleased with the ‘moaning’ about Dukes balls in the ongoing India vs England Test series.
The Dukes ball has become one of the more unexpected talking points in the five-match series between India and England. What began as quiet complaints about its quality has now become a full-blown debate. Both teams, especially India, have made their frustration clear over how the ball is behaving. Three matches in, and its shape and condition have been discussed almost as much as the players themselves.
India’s frustration boiled over during the third Test at Lord’s when their appeal for a change of ball on Day 2 was denied. The moment, caught on cameras, captured the visible anger in the Indian camp. While the visitors believed the ball had lost shape and was impacting play, not everyone seemed to agree. In fact, former England captain Alastair Cook made a cheeky remark on the bowlers over the situation.
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"I just love how bowlers are always moaning. It's like they bowl a bad ball and it's never their fault. They’ve scraped the footmark... If they bowl a bad ball, they look at the ball and blame the shape," Cook quipped while speaking on BBC Sport.
Cook, himself a former opener, then switched perspectives briefly to acknowledge the batter's plight.
"I think a batsman would much rather hit some slightly harder ball. Nothing worse than playing a lovely cover drive like I used to and it going nowhere," he added, highlighting how a worn ball can affect even the cleanest strokes.
Nasser's earlier dig
Earlier in the Test, Nasser Hussain had also taken a dig at India’s persistence, calling their attempts to replace the ball “bizarre.”
"I cannot work out why you’d want to change a ball that was doing this much. I thought it was one of the most bizarre decisions," said the ex-England skipper, unconvinced by India’s logic.
With England leading 2-1 and the fourth Test set to begin at Old Trafford on July 23, India find themselves cornered, needing a win not just against England’s in-form line-up but also, perhaps, the erratic nature of the Dukes ball that continues to grab headlines.
