'Grumpy old man' Ben Stokes apologizes to his teammates for their frustration at the Multan Test

England captain Ben Stokes revealed that he had apologized to his teammates for expressing their frustration on the field on the third day of their second Test against Pakistan in Multan. Stokes lost his temper after England slip fielders, including Joe Root, took simple catches that ultimately proved decisive as the tourists lost the second Test by 152 runs.

Ben Stokes was seen using the F-word on the field when Salman Ali Agha was hit twice in an over by fast bowler Brydon Carse. Wicketkeeper Jamie Smith and Root took a catch each. Salman got a reprieve as he batted in single digits. The middle-order batsman scored a crucial 63 runs and extended Pakistan's lead to 296 runs in the second innings.

PAK vs. ENG 2nd Test, Day 4: Scorecard | Highlights

England could have chased less in the final innings if they had been cleaner on the field. As expected, the dry surface in Multan helped Pakistan spinners Sajid Khan and Noman Ali as they ran through the English batting order and bowled out the visitors for 144.

With Sajid and Noman picking up all 20 wickets between them, Pakistan ended a nearly four-year wait for a home Test match win and leveled the ongoing series against England.

“Nobody has any intention of dropping catches but it just proves how important catches are in these sub-continental conditions, they don’t happen that often. I actually apologized to the group last night as it's the first time in my captaincy that I've expressed my emotions and my feelings in my body language throughout the game,” Stokes told broadcasters.

“I admitted that and was very upset about letting it out. This is something I don’t want to do or be seen as, so I apologized to the group for it.”

“Poor old man, I was a tired, grumpy old man last night! This won’t happen to you again,” he added.

It was England's first defeat in Pakistan on their last two tours. Under Stokes, England had defeated Pakistan 3-0. While Stokes missed the first Test of the current series due to a breakdown, Ollie Pope led England to a sensational victory. Pakistan had scored 556 in their first innings and England, riding on Harry Brooks' three hundred and Joe Root's double hundred, scored 823 in their first innings and won the Test by an innings and 47 runs.

Pakistan made bold decisions and dropped Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah from their squad for the second and third Tests. They also saved the pitch for the Multan Test and reinforced their spin bowling strength by bringing in Noman Ali, Sajid Khan and Zahid Mahmood.

Kamran Ghulam, replacing Babar Azam, hit a hundred while Noman and Sajid ensured England's weaknesses against spin on dry pitches were exposed.

The third Test between the two teams will be played in Rawalpindi from October 24.