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Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has slammed Indian pacer Akash Deep for his send-off gesture in Ben Duckett’s dismissal during day 02 of the fifth test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.

Ponting said that he would have shown physical aggression if such a gesture had been directed at him during his playing days.

Players engaged in verbal exchanges in the five-match test series between India and England.

England had 2-1 lead, with the fifth test underway at The Oval. India scored 75/2 by the end of day 02 with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akash Deep at crease.

The ongoing series has been marked by significant drama between the visitors and hosts, with numerous on-field altercations and a notable lack of sportsmanship.

This reached a peak on day 02 of the final test, as Ben Duckett received a cheeky sendoff after being dismissed by Akash Deep, with an arm around his shoulders as the batter walked off.

While Ben Duckett was seemed to be cool, his frustration was evident. KL Rahul had stepped in to seperate the two.

The incident drew criticism from cricketing figures, including Ricky Ponting, Michael Atherton, and Dinesh Karthik.

Ricky Ponting expressed admiration for Ben Duckett’s calm reaction after being dismissed by Akash Deep. Ponting also added that his respect for the England opener had grown even more because he didn’t retaliate after the send off.

“Although I mean, when I saw it, I just thought they must have been mates or played against each other somewhere or together. I would like to have something like that.”

“I mean, you don’t see that every day, maybe in a local park game or not in a test match that’s been played as fiercely as this series has been played. I love the way that Ben Duckett plays his cricket. I think I like him more now to not to be able to react to that,” Ponting added.

Bowlers dominated on day 02 as 15 wickets fell on frida, India added only 20 runs to their overnight score of 204-6 before being bowled out for 224 at The Kia Oval.