Australia cricket captain Tim Paine has criticised England all-rounder Ben Stokes for a “cheap shot” at David Warner, claiming he was using the opener to sell his new book.
In his book, Stokes claims Warner’s sledging motivated him during his remarkable Headingley innings in the third Ashes Test this year. Stokes’s unbeaten 135, during which he was dropped at slip by Warner, inspired England to a record run chase and one-wicket win to square the five-match series at 1-1.
Paine disputed the England player’s claims and was adamant Warner did nothing wrong. Asked specifically if it was a cheap shot by Stokes, Paine replied: “Oh absolutely.”
“I was obviously standing next to David the whole time [at first slip] and you are allowed to talk on the cricket field,” he told the press on Sunday ahead of his country’s Test series against Pakistan.
“But by no means was he abusing him or sledging him,” he added. “It just seems to be a common trend in England that they like to use Davey’s name to spike book sales.”
In his new book On Fire, Stokes said of Warner: “He just wouldn’t shut up for most of my time out there. I could accept it from just about any other opponent. Truly. Not from him, though.
“The changed man he was adamant he’d become, the one that hardly said boo to a goose and even went as far as claiming he had been re-nicknamed ‘Humble’ by his Australia teammates, had disappeared.”