England head coach Eddie Jones returned serve at Australia's Nic White, who said he was expecting more off-the-ball "niggle" in Saturday's deciding Test in Sydney, describing the Wallabies scrum-half as "the biggest niggler of all time".
With one win apiece both teams are out to secure victory at the Sydney Cricket Ground to decide the three-game series and the preceding two games have set up what should be a fiery encounter.
The Wallabies' Darcy Swain was suspended for a headbutt in the first Test, before cameras caught England prop Ellis Genge driving his elbow into White, as the latter was lying face-down on the ground in the second encounter.
White addressed the situation, asserting that Genge leaning on him was a diplomatic way of putting it, before Jones laughed off his implication about the front-rower.
"He’s got plenty to say. I hardly think he’s entitled to make that comment," the England coach said. "He’s the biggest niggler of all time.
"That makes me laugh. The boy from Queanbeyan who niggles everyone, complaining about niggle. That's a bit like the pot calling the kettle black.
"Obviously he thinks that and his perception is reality, so he's got a funny way of looking at reality. He's just trying to look for something."
Australian captain Michael Hooper cited White's competitiveness to brush off Jones' comments ahead of the Wallabies' captain's run, but added the series had ultimately been played in a competitive but fair spirit.
"Whitey is just obsessed with rugby," he said. "The guy is an absolute footy nerd. He just wants to play. He's as competitive as you'll see. Most half-backs are. He'll be doing his usual thing tomorrow.
"It's been competitive and enjoyable. Both teams just want to win and we get a chance to see that tomorrow.
"[I am] expecting [niggle] to be an element in tomorrow's game but ultimately tomorrow is all about who is up on the scoreboard and who can do it for longer."
Late wickets give England hope after difficult start to Pakistan Test
Three wickets in the final session kept England within reach on day one of the first Test against Pakistan, for whom Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood struck centuries in an impressive start.
The hosts reached stumps at 328/4 in Multan, but things could have been worse for England on a day that started with both teams keen to bat on a pristine surface.
Masood won the toss and elected to bat, and it was his excellent knock of 155 off 177 deliveries – his first Test ton in four years – that helped to put them in a commanding position at 261/1 soon after tea.
England actually made a fast start as Gus Atkinson – playing in his first overseas Test – had Saim Ayub (4) caught behind by Jamie Smith, but if the tourists thought they had an early breakthrough, those thoughts were soon dispelled.
Shafique put a poor run of form behind him with his watchful century, hitting 102 runs off 188 deliveries as Pakistan batted out the best part of two sessions without further loss.
He then fell victim to Atkinson in the 60th over of the day, playing a tired shot straight to England's stand-in captain Ollie Pope at cover, and within three more overs, Jack Leach had the wicket the tourists desperately craved.
Fatigue also looked to play a part as Masood tamely chipped Leach's delivery straight back to the bowler, bringing an end to his magnificent innings.
It was then time for Chris Woakes, who – like the rest of England's attack – had bowled expensively early on, to get in on the act.
He pinned Babar Azam lbw for 30, with a Pakistan review in vain as England gave themselves a chance to attack the middle order on Tuesday, the hosts only adding four more runs before stumps.
Data Debrief: Pakistan's progress slows
Pakistan knew they needed early runs to put Brendon McCullum's high-scoring tourists on the back foot, and early runs are exactly what they got.
Captain Masood led from the front, with his 43-ball half-century being the second-fastest by a Pakistan skipper in Tests, as he bids to halt the team's five-match losing run with him at the helm.
But things became steadier for Masood and his team-mates as the day went on. Pakistan's run rate stood at 4.88 by lunch, 4.48 by tea and 3.81 by stumps. England will hope they have weathered the storm and can go on the attack on day two.
England 'realistic' about chances in Pakistan, says McCullum
Brendon McCullum says England are going into their three-match Test series against Pakistan with "realistic" expectations, and anticipates a tough test from their hosts.
England became the first side to achieve a 3-0 clean sweep in Pakistan during their last tour in 2022.
And Pakistan have had no success on home soil in the last two years, with a 1-0 defeat by Australia in early 2022 setting off a 10-match winless run, with Bangladesh the latest to triumph against them.
England are without captain Ben Stokes though, as he was ruled out of the first Test after failing to recover from a hamstring tear in time.
Despite recent history suggesting England may just have an edge, McCullum is taking nothing for granted.
"We go in with high hopes," McCullum told BBC Sport. "There will be no excuses whatsoever if we don't get where we need to get.
"We're also realistic this is going to be a tough series, because Pakistan in their own conditions, as history would suggest, it's a tough ask."
McCullum also brushed off concerns he was worried about not having James Anderson, who has been acting as their fast-bowling consultant since his retirement, with them for the first day.
"Jimmy has been a great resource for us, but prior to that, we didn't have a pace-bowling coach as such," he added.
"In the world we live in, communication is easy. Jimmy is in constant communication with the guys. I don't think it's a big issue."
For Pakistan, Shan Masood has lost all five Tests since being appointed captain last November, including the 2-0 defeat to Bangladesh in August.
"There is a lot of hurt within the players," Masood said. "This year, 2024, has not been a good year for Pakistan cricket all over, and we like to see our fans happy.
"The answer is to be positive. We let the past go. We have tried to maintain consistency in selection. We haven't had any chopping and changing because we have lost a few games.
"We believe in this set of players and with Jason Gillespie we wanted to create a squad mentality. The players are being backed to turn things around."
The first Test between England and Pakistan begins on Monday in Multan.
Gillespie defends under-fire Pakistan captain Masood ahead of England Test series
Jason Gillespie insists Shan Masood has a "clear plan" as Pakistan's Test captain.
Pakistan's red-ball skipper has faced scrutiny after overseeing five straight defeats as captain, starting by being whitewashed 3-0 by Australia last December.
That was followed by a shock 2-0 series defeat to Bangladesh last month, which marked Gillespie's first as Pakistan Test coach.
Next up is a three-match series with England, where Joe Root (12,402) is 71 away from surpassing Alastair Cook (12,472) as the all-time leading run scorer for England in men’s Tests, beginning in Multan on Monday.
Speaking on BBC World Service's Stumped podcast, Gillespie said of Masood: "Shan has got a very clear plan on how the Test side should play and we are completely aligned on that," the 49-year-old said.
"There are things people don't see and I've been really impressed by his communication with the players and how he's gone about doing his job."
Gillespie added that he believes part of the issue is improving the fitness of the team.
He added: "We can't afford to have players in international cricket who are not fit or strong enough to negotiate the rigours of the game.
"What I've learned from the Bangladesh series is that we've got some wonderful players, but we need to be more consistent. We've got the skills but we need to keep fine-tuning them.
"There's also been plenty of talks around fitness and we're making sure that it's a key component for us going forward."
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