The veteran English all-rounder, Ben Stokes was seen applying saliva on the ball during the opening day of the ongoing day-night third Test against India in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. However, after the incident, the umpires had to sanitize the ball. The incident took place at the end of the 12th over when Stokes applied his saliva on the ball by mistake to shine the ball, prompting umpire Nitin Menon to have a chat with him.

The ball was subsequently sanitized. The International Cricket Council (ICC) had banned the use of saliva to shine the ball due to the COVID-19 pandemic in June last year. According to the current COVID-19 regulations of the ICC, a team can be issued up to two warnings per innings but repeated use of saliva on the ball will result in a five-run penalty to the batting side.

Whenever saliva is applied to the ball, the umpires have to clean it before play recommences.

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Earlier in the game, Axar Patel claimed a career-best 6-38 as he and spin colleague Ravichandran Ashwin helped the hosts to bundle out the visitors for 112 on an opening day of the Ahmedabad Test.

Umpire warns Ben Stokes because he is putting Saliva on the ball. pic.twitter.com/6utiAjw9oA

— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) February 24, 2021

Playing his 100th test, seamer Ishant Sharma had Dom Sibley caught in the slip in the third over before the Indian spinners wreaked havoc. The Indian skipper, Virat Kohli introduced spin as early as in the seventh over and Patel trapped Jonny Bairstow lbw for naught with his first delivery.

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Before the partnership between Crawley and Root could flourish, R Ashwin intervened as he dismissed the England captain lbw for 17. Root reviewed the decision but could not prolong his innings. It was a sense of deja vu for England who was dismissed for 58 in their previous pink-ball test in New Zealand three years ago.