Former Australia National Cricket Team player Michael Clarke has spoken out about the tensions between the India National Cricket Team and the Australian media in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 tournament. He said there was nothing surprising because the same things had happened in the past.
The India national cricket team has had some issues with the Australian media amid the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The players were targeted by local media for not answering or replying to their inquiries related to the matches.
It all started after Virat Kohli was involved in a heated argument with the Australian media at Melbourne Airport. The batsman was furious after the media filmed without his permission and he was seen giving a good beating to the officials.
Ravindra Jadeja then became the target as the all-rounder was accused of not answering questions in English. The all-rounder attended the media briefly and had to leave because the team bus was leaving. This caused the Australian media to make a big issue.
They even got into a heated argument with the Indian media director, who then boycotted the friendly match with their Australian counterparts. Next, they accused the Indian team of deliberately sending Akash Deb to the media as the fast bowler is not good at speaking English.
I have faced Indian teams coming here and their skipper, MS Dhoni, has not given a single press conference during the entire Test series – Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke, while addressing the whole issue, said that nothing has changed since the past. Pointing out that MS Dhoni did not attend the media at all during his visit, he also pointed out how Sachin Tendulkar was restricted.
Michael Clarke added that India already had in mind how they would fare in Australia. Citing an example, he said how Gautam Gambhir demonstrated it with his plunger early on. Speaking on ESPN's About Wicket programme, he explained:
“I don't think much has changed, to be honest. I have faced Indian teams coming here, and their captain, MS Dhoni, did not give a single press conference during the entire Test series. So, Sachin was very restricted about when he chose to work in media, I think It's been the same for a long time, so I love the fact that they're still honoring someone.
“I think they made it very clear before they left India what they were going to be like when they got to Australia. They were going to stick to themselves, stick to their plan. Gambhir made that very clear in the first press conference.”
I don't think even chatting about this would bother India much. -Michael Clark
Michael Clarke added that there is nothing surprising about this situation. He claimed that India would not be bothered by the chat at all. He explained:
“So, I don't know why it would surprise anyone. For them, it will be about what happens on the field, not off the field. So, I don't think even chatting about it will bother India much.” “, concluded Michael Clarke.
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