Former Australian National Cricket Team player Michael Clarke has spoken about the tensions between the Indian National Cricket Team and the Australian media in the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He said that there is nothing surprising because the same things have happened in the past.
The Indian National Cricket Team has had some issues with the Australian media amid the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The players were targeted by the media at home for not answering or responding to their questions related to the games.
It all started after Virat Kohli was involved in a heated exchange with Australian media personnel at the Melbourne airport. The batsman became enraged after the media filmed without his permission and was seen delivering a good punch to the officials.
After that, Ravindra Jadeja became the target as the all-rounder was accused of not answering questions in English. The all-rounder attended the media for a short time and had to leave because the team bus was leaving. This saw the Australian press make a big deal of it.
They even had a heated argument with India's media manager, who then boycotted the friendly against their Australian counterparts. After that, they accused the Indian team of deliberately fielding Akash Deep in the press as the fast bowler is not fluent in English.
I felt that Indian teams came here and their captain MS Dhoni did not hold a single press conference during the entire Test series – Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke, while addressing the whole issue, said that nothing has changed from the past. He pointed out that MS Dhoni did not attend the media at all during his visit and also cited how Sachin Tendulkar was restricted.
Michael Clarke added that India already had in mind how they would be in Australia. Citing an example about the same, he said how Gautam Gambhir made it clear with his press from the beginning. Speaking on ESPN Around the Wicket, he explained:
“I don't think much has changed, to be honest. We have experienced Indian teams coming here and their captain MS Dhoni has not held a single press conference during the entire Test series. So Sachin was very restrictive. when he chose to do media, I think it's just as long.
“I think they made it pretty clear before they left India what they're going to be like when they arrive in Australia. They're going to stand alone, they're going to stick to their plan. Gambhir made that very clear in the first press conference.”
I don't think even the talk around it would bother India too much – Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke added that there was nothing surprising about the situation. He claimed that India will not be bothered by the chat at all. He elaborated:
“So I don't know why anyone is surprised, and for them, it would be about what happens on the pitch, not off the pitch. So, I don't think even the discussion around it would bother India much. Michael Clarke concluded.
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