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Pat Cummins' massive new confession as Ashes furore re-ignited in cricket documentary

Behind-the-scenes footage has been revealed for the first time after the drama around Jonny Bairstow's dismissal.

adam lucius
Contributor
·3-min read

The immediate reaction of Australia's leading cricketers to the ugly confrontation with the Lord's crowd during last year's acrimonious Ashes series has been revealed for the first time. Prime Video's latest fly-on-the-wall documentary – The Test Season Three – follows the Test team through its World Test Championship win over India before focusing on the Ashes.

It didn’t take long for flashpoints to emerge between cricket's oldest enemies, with Alex Carey's controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow in the second Test at Lord's prompting unprecedented scenes at the normally reserved home of cricket. The Australians were confronted by outraged Lord's members as they made their way off the field and through the famous Long Room at the lunch break on day five.

Pat Cummins and Australian cricket teammates during the second Ashes Test.
Pat Cummins (L) has revealed it was his idea to stump Jonny Bairstow, while the Aussie players have opened up on the abuse they copped from MCC members (R). Image: Getty/Channel 9

Several Australian players had their say after the event but the documentary takes you inside the dressing-room within half an hour of the incident. Reserve batsman Marcus Harris triggers laughter among his teammates when he tells them: "They (spectators) were kicking off over the fence. I was like 'you write the rules, you f***ing idiots – it's not our fault."

Top order batsman Marnus Labuschagne adds: "One bloke was foaming at the mouth. A bloke kicked 'Bull' (David Warner) as he was going up the stairs."

After the teams exchanged words over lunch, Labuschagne adds: "You almost missed a brawl in the lunch room. Jonny came in hot. He goes, 'are you guys happy with that?' Davey (Warner) is mid chicken and he just stops and takes it out and goes 'yeah, very'. It was freakin' priceless."

Alex Carey, pictured here after dismissing Jonny Bairstow in controversial fashion in the second Ashes Test.
Alex Carey dismissed Jonny Bairstow in controversial fashion in the second Ashes Test.
Jonny Bairstow, pictured here after his controversial stumping in the Ashes.
Jonny Bairstow looks on after his controversial stumping.

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Skipper Pat Cummins is revealed as the architect of the plan to stump Bairstow if he wandered out of the crease, telling the documentary: "I saw him do it a couple of balls in a row. So I said to 'Kez' (Carey) the ball before, just have a throw." Reflecting on the members' hostile reaction, Cummins tells the documentary: "It was like we'd ripped the soul out of them."

Opener Usman Khawaja said: "There was probably three of them who called out and one of them was really inappropriate. One of the MCC members starts spraying me. I was like 'mate, you can’t be saying this stuff' and he was like 'mate, I can say what I effin want'. (There was) that sense of entitlement, almost."

Straight shooting off spinner Nathan Lyon was having none of England's 'against the spirit of cricket' talk. "It’s a load of crap. It’s a stumping. It's out every day of the week," he said.

  • The Test Season Three three-part series begins on Prime Video on May 24