Sunil Gavaskar has criticised Australia skipper Tim Paine over his behavior during the Sydney Test and added that his days are numbered in the team.
The third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground was not a memorable one for Tim Paine. The Australian skipper failed with the bat, dropped three catches on the final day that denied Australia a sure win. Tim Paine was also involved in a spat with the on-field umpire F Paul Wilson after the DRS reprieve of Cheteshwar Pujara which earned him a fine of 15 percent of his match fee. His miserable Test was compounded by the altercation he had with Ravichandran Ashwin in which he was sledged back by the India all-rounder. Following the end of the Test match, former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar criticised the actions of Tim Paine.
"His days as captain are numbered. If you allow the Indian team to bat 130-odd overs without getting wickets...this is a very good Australian attack. The bowling changes, the field placements, everything could have made a difference to the result. Tim Paine was more interested in talking to the batsman rather than his field placing and bowling changes. So, I won't be surprised if there is a change in the Australian captaincy after the series is over," Gavaskar had told India Today after the end of the game in Sydney.
On Thursday, Australia skipper Tim Paine responded to the criticism and said Sunil Gavaskar is entitled to his opinion, but it does not affect the Australian team one bit. "I am not going to get into it. Going back and forth with Sunil Gavaskar, do not think I am going to win that. He is entitled to his opinion, it does not affect us one bit. If anything it is adding to the Test match. Sunny can keep saying what he wants to say, but in the end, we do not have anything to do with him," said Paine in a virtual press conference.
Apologised for his behavior
However, Tim Paine seemed to have redeemed himself when he gave an impromptu press conference after the draw in Sydney in which he apologised for his actions and said that his leadership went missing.
"It was a poor reflection of that. My leadership was not good enough. I let the pressure of the game get to me. It affected my mood and performance," Paine had said. Tim Paine took over the Australian cricket team in the aftermath of the ball-tampering scandal and there was a cultural change in the way Australia played their game. For 18 months, they had maintained a good record but with the behavior in Sydney, Tim Paine admitted that it was a blip on the radar.
"It is certainly not a reflection of how I want to lead the team. We set high standards over the last 18 months and yesterday, it was a blip on the radar. I needed to come out and address. I am bitterly disappointed with the way I behaved. My whole mood during the entire course of the Test match was slightly off. The way I spoke to the umpires on day 2 was disappointing. I have to cope with that on the chin. It is not the way I want to lead the Australian team going forward. I talk to the players on how to play the game based on skill and not on emotion. Yesterday, I fell short on standards and expectations so bitterly disappointed with that. This is time for some self-reflection and learning from it and be able to move on to the Gabba Test," Paine said.
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