England Test captain Ben Stokes says his players will not take any steps back after tensions flared between his side and India in last week's third Test at Lord's.
Things came to a head after India captain Shubman Gill was angered by England openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley slowing down play late on day three.
The pair were late to the crease and then Crawley called for trainers after being hit on the finger, ensuring India only got in one over before stumps.
Gill sarcastically clapped England batters' over delays during play and the team surrounded the openers as frustration grew, as England set India 193 runs to win, setting up a 22-run win to take a 2-1 lead in the series.
Gill defended his heated exchange with Duckett and Crawley, saying England's 90-second delay in taking to the crease was not "in the spirit of the game".
"A lot of people have been talking about it, so let me just clear the air for once and for all," Gill said on the eve of the fourth match.
"The English batsmen on [day three] had 7 minutes of play left. They were 90 seconds late to come to the crease — not 10, not 20, 90 seconds late.
"Yes, most of the teams do this … but there's a manner to do it.
"If you get hit on your body, the physios are allowed to come on, and that is fair. But to be able to come 90 seconds late [to] the crease is not something that I would think comes in the spirit of the game."
Fast bowler Mohammed Siraj roared in the face of England opener Ben Duckett after taking his wicket, the pair bumping shoulders as Duckett trudged off.
Gill said those moments were on the back of a build-up of "a lot of things that we thought should not have happened", but admitted he was not proud of his actions in getting in the face of England batters.
"We had no intention of doing that whatsoever. But it just … you're playing a game, you're playing to win, and there are a lot of emotions involved," he said.
"And when you see there are things happening that should not happen, sometimes the emotions come out of nowhere."
That sentiment was echoed by Stokes.
"I don't think either team is really looking to do that," he said.
"I think there's just always going to be a moment in a Test series where something does heat up.
"It's a massive series, there's a lot of pressure on both teams to go out and perform, so there's going to be some moments and some heat showing."
ABC/Reuters
