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Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden came to the defence of Ricky Ponting in his war of words with Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Ricky Ponting and Gautam Gambhir’s war of words (PTI/Instagram)
The war of words is truly underway between Indians and Australians ahead of the five-match series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting had expressed concern over Virat Kohli’s recent struggles in Test cricket but backed the former India captain to rediscover his form.
However, at India’s pre-departure press conference, India head coach Gambhir took issue with Ponting’s assessment of Kohli’s form, thus sparking an exchange between the two cricketing greats.
Ponting, in turn, described Gambhir as “quite a prickly character”.
The Aussie duo Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden came to the defence of their captain.
“Punter can comment on anything he wants. I think he has earned the right to comment on most aspects of cricket. I love this, this is going to get the popcorn out for the rest of the summer,” the legendary Aussie wicketkeeper was quoted as saying on the Club Prairie Fire podcast.
“We are paid to make an opinion, make a comment and make a call about the game we know and love,” said the powerful southpaw batter,” said former Australian opener.
Former Australian captain Tim Paine warned Gautam Gambhir’s “prickly” coaching style may not bode well for the Indian team, and it could be a “long summer” if they fail to start strong in the Perth Test on November 22.
“Their last two series wins out here they had Ravi Shastri who was fantastic. He created a great environment, the players were energised, they played with passion, he sold them the dream and motivated them in a really light-hearted enjoyable way,” Paine said on SEN Radio.
“They (India) have gone to a new coach now that is really prickly, really competitive — and that not to say that’s not a good thing and a good way to coach — but my concern is that it’s not a great fit for the Indian cricket team.
“If your coach is the first one to crack in a press conference after being asked a simple question, it could be a really long summer for Gautam Gambhir if India don’t get off to a good start on Perth.”
