After the wicketkeeper man-handled a climate activist during the second Ashes Test on Wednesday, Josh Tongue of England praised Jonny Bairstow as a “hero” for defending the Lord’s pitch by calling him a “hero” for safeguarding the field.
Just before Stuart Broad bowled the second over of the first day of the first test match, two protestors from the group Just Stop Oil jumped onto the outfield from the Lord’s Grandstand.
In spite of the fact that the protestors scattered the orange powder that has become the group’s signature across the field, Bairstow’s prompt action prevented them from actually reaching the pitch.
The star player for England seized hold of one of the protesters and led them off the field of play to the delight of the spectators, while the other intruder was removed from the field of play by security personnel.
A third protester was stopped before making it onto the outfield after being apprehended.
Tongue believed that the match would have been greatly disrupted or even canceled altogether if the powder had coated the pitch.
“As I turned around, I noticed Jonny chasing after him. “Who knows where the game would have been if they had put the powder on the wicket,” the fast bowler Tongue remarked. “Who knows where the game would have been.”
Because of what Jonny did, who knows, the game may have been called off otherwise.
“To be fair, he was a bit of a hero; if he hadn’t stopped him, they might have been able to get on the pitch and do something.”
Tongue, who was participating in only his second Test for England, said that he would not have been as brave as Bairstow had he been in the same situation.
“I wouldn’t go towards them myself in case they had anything else on them,” he stated. “I wouldn’t go toward them.”
Just Stop Oil is an organization that is working to put a halt to new oil and gas development in the North Sea. In order to achieve this goal, they have caused disruptions at a number of athletic events, including the English Premiership rugby union final and the British Formula One Grand Prix.
During matches in the Premier League, protesters have been seen tying themselves to the goalposts, while during the World Snooker Championship, protesters have been seen throwing orange powder on the green baize.
Earlier this month, the England squad bus that was transporting the side to Lord’s for the Test match against Ireland was also delayed because of Just Stop Oil.
David Warner, the opener for Australia, said that his squad had been alerted of the possibility of an activist pitch invasion. Warner referred to the scenario as a “touchy situation.”
But because the players had been instructed not to get involved, he was caught off guard when Bairstow took the initiative to moderate the throng.
“We had been warned before hand that it might happen,” Warner added. “We were not caught off guard.” “We were at a loss for what to do,” you said. We were warned to keep our distance and not treat them roughly as Jonny does!
The brawny Bairstow appeared to handle the situation with complete confidence, yet the risky moves he took may have resulted in his being hurt.
Terry Alderman, an Australian bowler, sustained shoulder injuries in 1982 while attempting to tackle a spectator who had run onto the pitch during an Ashes test in Perth.
According to Warner, “we wanted to protect the wicket, and we didn’t want it to get damaged.” “It’s a delicate position to be sure. You don’t want to become engaged in that, but everything is going to be all right.
After the drama of the protest, Australia were much in control of the situation, scoring 339-5 at stumps in response to England’s choice to bowl first in cloudy circumstances.
The off-spinner Joe Root took two wickets at the end of the day, giving England additional reason for optimism.
We had a number of chances in the first half, but we couldn’t convert any of them due to our terrible luck. Tongue, who was responsible for removing both of Australia’s openers, stated that they might have been three or four wickets down.
“The two wickets that Joe took were really important. They were putting up points at a respectable clip.”
Warner, who scored 66 runs before being dismissed by Tongue, said that the game was “quite challenging” and that the bowling conditions were “very good.” We had the impression that they bowled quite well with the new ball, which swung around a little bit.
“We did not deviate from our game plan. I believe that, all things considered, it was a successful day.