IND vs ENG, 5th Test: Ben Stokes Says 'I Wasn't Here' As Reporter Asks If England Players Too Were Asked To Stand 2.5m Away From Pitch After Gautam Gambhir's Spat With Curator

England captain Ben Stokes opened up on Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir's spat with The Oval curator ahead of the fifth Test, beginning on July 31, Thursday. When asked by a reporter whether the England team were given instructions to look at the pitch 2.5 meters away from it, Stokes said he doesn't quite know what had happened.

The altercation between Gambhir and The Oval's curator Lee Fortis occurred 48 hours before the match when the visiting team were engaged in an optional training session. The former Indian opener was engaged in a war of words and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak later addressed the incident and revealed, as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:

"When some of us coaches went to see the wicket, a member of the groundstaff said stay away at least 2.5 metres, which was a little surprising. Because it is the pitch, the match is starting day after, it will be a five-day Test, and we're standing in our joggers, so we felt a little awkward."

There were also reports that the ground authorities could lodge a complaint against Gambhir.

During the presser on Wednesday, one of the reporters asked:

"Were there any instructions given to you that you can only watch the pitch from 2.5 meters away?"

In response, the 34-year-old stated:

"This is about yesterday. It's hard not to see that stuff but I wasn't here, so I don't know what happened."

England make four changes to their XI for The Oval Test:

Meanwhile, England have triggered four changes to their playing XI for the fifth and final Test, with Ben Stokes also ruled out of the clash. Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue have come in for Stokes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer and Liam Dawson.

With the England captain ruled out of the clash, Ollie Pope will lead them.

England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue.