Irfan Pathan has backed Ravindra Jadeja in his fight with Australia media as reportedly, he refused to answer a question in English and continued in Hindi during an interview session in Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.
Jasprit Bumrah led the Indian side to a 295-run triumph in Perth to kick off their red-ball tour. However, they lost by ten wickets in the day-night Test in Adelaide. Rain caused the third Test to end in a tie. Notably, the Indian squad performs well in the series’ final two sites.
Ravindra Jadeja reportedly addressed questions in his native language during a press conference at the MCG on Saturday. Jadeja declined to respond in English, despite the presence of Australian journalists. He hastily ended the press conference by telling them he needed to catch the bus.
An Indian journalist defended Jadeja against Australian media claims that he “refused to answer questions in English.” The journalist stated that it is not necessary to respond in English. He added that despite the team bus waiting for him, the all-rounder managed to hold a 9-minute press conference.
Irfan Pathan backs Ravindra Jadeja after Australian media angered at him
Following the controversy over India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja answering questions in Hindi during a media engagement in Melbourne on Saturday, former India bowler Irfan Pathan has expressed his opinion, stating that the player decides to answer questions in any language he prefers.
The engagement was organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for traveling media, although some Australian media agencies also attended and were accommodated.
Some local journalists eventually lost their cool with the BCCI media manager. Cameras filmed the heated events, apparently on purpose, and eventually aired on Australian television.
Reacting to the unwarranted controversy, Irfan expressed his displeasure on X, and wrote: “What’s wrong if the player wants to give interview in Hindi?”
What’s wrong if the player wants to give interview in hindi?
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) December 22, 2024
Ravindra Jadeja scored an important 77-run knock in the third Test against Australia at the Gabba. He stepped in when India was struggling at 74/5 and played a critical role in preventing a follow-on. He scored 67 runs with KL Rahul for the sixth wicket and 53 runs with Nitish Kumar Reddy (16) for the seventh.
The all-rounder is expected to keep his position in the fourth Test, which will be contested at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on December 26.
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