Australia are whingers! Pumped-up England star Ollie Robinson defends howling ‘f*** off, you f***ing p***k’ after firing Usman Khawaja in the Ashes, telling him: ‘You’ve been doing this to us for years’
- Ollie Robinson has no regrets about his celebration after Usman Khawaja’s bowling
- He appeared to swear at Khawaja after bowling him for 141 on day three
- England ended a heavily rain-plagued day 28-2, a lead of 35 at Edgbaston
Ollie Robinson made no apology for his rude goodbye to Usman Khawaja – then taunted Australia by asking: ‘If you can’t handle that, what can you handle?’
The pumped up England bowler appeared to say to Khawaja ‘F*** off, you f***ing p***k’ after dismissing him for 141, the first of three wickets he took as the tourists collapsed to 386 all out.
Robinson’s fervent celebration was criticized by Australian reporters as rain brought a premature end to the third day of the first Ashes Test, with England finishing 28 for 2, a lead of just 35 runs.
But the 29-year-old replied, “I don’t really care how it’s perceived. It’s the Ashes, it’s professional sports. If you can’t handle that, what can you handle?
“If you’re in the heat of the moment and have the passion of the Ashes, that can happen. We’ve all seen Ricky Ponting and other Aussies do that to us, so just because the shoe is on the other foot doesn’t make it well received.
Ollie Robinson made no apology for his rude goodbye to Usman Khawaja
“For me it’s my first home Ashes and to get the big wicket at the time was special for me. Getting that wicket for the team was huge. We all want that theater of play and I’m here to provide it.’
When asked if he expected to be reprimanded by the match umpire, Robinson replied, “I’m not going to comment on that.”
Despite their media groans, Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey insisted his team had no issues with Robinson.
“Usman didn’t say anything,” he said. ‘It’s the Ashes, sometimes it will be quite exciting and hostile cricket. I didn’t see anything over the top there. There was no comment from our dressing room.’
Robinson, who said for the Ashes that he hoped to give Australia a ‘good shelter’, also criticized their opponents’ ‘defensive’ batting style and was slapped after England took their last four wickets for 14 runs.
“We said once we get past Pat Cummins, we feel like they’ve got three number 11s,” he admitted. “It’s something we can focus on throughout the series and finish their innings quite quickly and give us momentum.”
Robinson also praised Ben Stokes for his funky field placements as the England captain put six men in catching positions in front of the bat before clearing Khawaja with a yorker.
Robinson says Khawaja should be able to handle his reaction as it’s part of the game
“Stokes came to me before the ball and said, ‘What have we done in Pakistan?'” he revealed. “We decided to try the umbrella field and let me bowl a yorker first. It’s one of those plans that came true and Stokesy looks like a genius.’
England started their second innings with a lead of seven, losing both openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett in bowler-friendly conditions after a rain break, with Crawley appearing unhappy with the umpires for being asked to bat in darkness. Robinson said, “Yeah, they were (frustrated), but they understand that if the umpire says it’s fit to play, it’s fit to play. You won’t hear any apologies from us.’
Robinson also blistered Moeen Ali’s spinning figure, which seemed to cause him trouble during the four overs he bowled yesterday, which amounted to 23 runs. Moeen was also fined 25 percent of his match fees for drying his bowling hand with a spray on Saturday.
“As far as I know, it’s fine,” Robinson added. “I haven’t seen it myself, but it looks fine to me.”