‘Greatest load of rubbish’: Former Australian captain slams Matthew Wade, Tim Paine for constant sledging, banter

England edged ahead of Australia on Day 3 at Oval after a day of riveting action. There was high-quality bowling and batting on display and amid all this, there was also banter, sledges and plenty of vocal advises being thrown around. Ben Stokes apparently called David Warner “a f***ing p***k” while Australian captain Tim Paine is believed to have called the all-rounder “Bristol” - which was a dig to his brawl outside a nightclub in 2017.

Matthew Wade, who really never kept quiet during the entire duration of the series, was very vocal on the day and this even forced the umpires to intervene and slap him on the wrist. However, Tim Paine brushed it all off saying it was all part of the game.

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This did not sit down too well with former Australian captain Ian Chappell who dubbed the constant sledging as the ,greatest load of rubbish’ and he also asked the umpires to step in and bring matters under control.

“It’s about time the bloody umpires intervened,” he said on Sports Sunday.

“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.”

Wade even took aim at umpire Dharamsena after an appeal was turned down.

Speaking of Wade’s antics, Chappell slammed him and 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.”

Chappell was not on board with the theory that sledging was indeed part of the game. He, instead, wanted the umpires and administrators to be more vigilant and assertive with the way they handle situations. “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,” the former Australian captain said.