Tim Paine calls out Ben Stokes for explosive outburst at Johannesburg spectator

When the Aussies copped flak from spectators during the Ashes, they laughed played along. Ben Stokes had a very different approach in South Africa.

When the Aussies copped flak from spectators during the Ashes, they laughed played along. Ben Stokes had a very different approach in South Africa.

Australian cricket captain Tim Paine has ripped into Ashes hero Ben Stokes for his explosive outburst during a Test match in Johannesburg last month.

Stokes apologised after swearing at a spectator during England’s fourth Test against South Africa in January, where he appeared to call the cricket fan a “f***ing four-eyed c***”.

The England all-rounder’s reaction was filmed as he was departing the field following his dismissal. It was later revealed the spectator called red-haired Stokes “Ed Sheeran”, prompting the aggressive outburst.

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When asked if teammates David Warner and Steve Smith copped anything worse from the British crowds during last year’s Ashes series, Paine’s response was blunt.

“Worse than being called Ed Sheeran? I think they might have,” Paine told The Daily Telegraph.

“Absolutely, all the time — and it wasn’t just Steve and Dave, it was everyone.”

Ben Stokes copped a 15 per cent fine for his R-rated outburst

Stokes’ childish outburst was a stark contrast to Warner during the Ashes, who played along when the English crowd hurled abuse.

Footage emerged in September of a spectator calling the Australian opener a “f***ing cheat” at Old Trafford — Warner’s response was a playful thumbs up and yelp of approval, the English cricket fans erupting in laughter.

Similarly, when the Barmy Army started chanting, “He’s got sandpaper in his hands” at Edgbaston in August, Warner simply smiled and turned out his pockets, proving his innocence. The Birmingham crowd applauded Warner for the cheeky joke.

Despite a poor run in the Ashes series with the bat, Warner won over the English spectators with his playful, cheery behaviour — something Stokes is clearly yet to learn.

Ryan Pierse’s iconic photo of David Warner at Edgbaston

Paine argued the English cricketers shouldn’t overreact when receiving abuse from spectators, especially considering their appraisal of the infamous Barmy Army.

“You cannot react to the crowd, but then always encourage the Barmy Army to do exactly the same, and worse — abuse players.

“They clap (the Barmy Army) at the end of the days’ play and make a big point of thanking them, as like the 12th man, or 13th player.

“Then a little thing like that (Stokes being called Sheeran), they react and all of a sudden, ‘we’re getting abused from the crowd, we’re getting this, we’re getting that.’

“That’s international cricket, just get on with it. It frustrates me, it really does.”

Warner and Smith returned to South Africa this week for the first time since the ball-tampering scandal almost two years ago.

Paine said the Australian squad had discussed how to approach the vocal South African crowd, planning to “rise above” the anticipated abuse.

“We made a bit of a thing as a group that we weren’t going to react to it, we were going to rise above it. We know now that’s what we’re going to cop because of what happened in South Africa and that’s fine,” Paine admitted.

Tim Paine admitted the Australian cricketers had discussed how to handle to South African crowd

“The worst thing you can do is react to it and as we saw in South Africa recently, it just makes the story bigger and puts more heat into something that had he (Stokes) kept walking, then no one would have even known about. It’s been a big focus of ours, is being able to bat it off and get on with it.

“I felt the way both Steve and Dave handled themselves and handled what was thrown at them off the field, I thought they were both absolutely exceptional and I think they will be again in South Africa.

“Obviously there’s going to be times when it’s going to be difficult for them, but that’s where it’s going to be important for their teammates and the staff to get around them and help them through it — and I’m sure they will.”

Australia’s first T20 match against South Africa starts Saturday morning at 3am AEDT.