India, Aug. 2 -- Prasidh Krishna lit up Day 1 of the fifth Test at The Oval with a spirited spell that rattled England's middle order, but it was his brief confrontation with Joe Root that drew as much attention as the wickets. The usually calm Root appeared visibly animated during a face-off with Prasidh, which included a stern stare and a short exchange of words between the two.

Reflecting on the incident at the end of the day's play, however, Prasidh dismissed any talk of hostility, framing it as part of the natural edge that comes with high-stakes cricket.

"I think it was just a competitive edge amongst us that was coming out, both of us are good mates off the field," he said.

"It was just a little bit of banter, and both of us enj...