2/3/2024 0 Comments Captin dickheadPaine How many IPL teams wanted you when you asked every single one of them? A half-hearted pat on the back after shaking hands on a draw won’t undo the damage done. The second irony is that, while Paine’s teammates might like him, judging by the immediate reaction online, they seem like the only ones. Already embraced as the saviour of Australian cricket’s soul, a series of mild remarks within ear shot of stump mic had him held up as the Australian Michael McIntyre as well. First, it echoes a similar comment made about Virat Kohli on India’s last tour of Australia, when Paine’s stock reached a peak it will surely never get close to again. The irony of the ‘dickhead’ line is two-fold. While Ashwin bit back, it was Paine who veered into the personal – “At least my teammates like me, dickhead” – and Paine who kept it going. If that might all be par for the course for a narrow Test match reaching its climax, then an exchange between Ashwin and Paine, which saw the former back away before facing up multiple times as the Australian gloveman kept talking as the bowler began his run-up, was properly unpleasant. Steve Smith did some strange scuffing of the crease that was perhaps more benign than it looked, the appealing bordered on excessive, Matthew Wade semi-squared up to Ravichandran Ashwin before pinging Hanuma Vihari with a couple of errant throws, and Paine complained loudly of time-wasting as the sixth-wicket pair exchanged a chest guard between overs. The niggle and needle continued throughout most of the day, with Australia showing they’re at least more inventive now if not any better. Siraj, who copped the brunt of the heckling, had given up the chance to be at his father’s funeral to be there. After two months in various bubbles away from their homes and families, with most having just spent longer at the IPL in the UAE, they arrived in Sydney already depleted by a succession of injuries, a list which increased by the day as the third Test unfolded. Whatever your view on the crowd incidents that have scarred this game, two things are indisputable: that what transpired was ugly, and that India are hurting.įor all that sports pits two countries against each other, Australia owe the touring Indians a debt for the sacrifice they’ve made. If today showed just how enthralling and visceral Test cricket can be, then the events of the previous two demonstrated how insignificant it really is when set against the horrors of the modern world. Ben Gardner on a finish to a classic Test match that threatened to boil over, and the fate of the captain who was more guilty than most for the bad blood.
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