How closely did you watch the first England vs India Test? If you were paying attention, you'd have seen Ben Stokes doing this inexplicable thing:
What was that gesture from Ben Stokes to Josh Tongue? pic.twitter.com/7HBIs5BlFF
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 21, 2025
Turns out it isn't the England captain calling for an early dinner. Stuart Broad took to twitter to explain the cryptic gesture.
Eating rabbit pie. Getting the Tailenders out. Knocking over the lower order. https://t.co/BAzQFtQ5CD
— Stuart Broad (@StuartBroad8) June 21, 2025
And the viewers weren't the only ones bamboozled by Stokes' jig; Josh Tongue had no idea what he was trying to say either.
Tongue cleaned up India's lower order in both innings of the Test, living up to his nickname of "The Mop" given to him by his county colleague Ben Duckett. Tongue picked up four wickets in the first innings and three in the second, accounting for Jasprit Bumrah both time, and ending Rishabh Pant's 134-run rampage in the first. England's bowlers scythed through India's middle and lower order on the penultimate day, taking the last six wickets for 31 runs, but not before KL Rahul and Pant set up the majority of the 371-run target. Pant scored hundreds in both innings.
This is only Tongue's fourth Test, but he already has 19 wickets under his belt, including a five-for against Ireland on debut in 2023.