The India-Australia rivalry has shaped up nicely with the turn of the millennium. While Australia entered the new century as the best side in the world, India was shaping up as an exciting team under the leadership of the maverick Sourav Ganguly.
And the 2001 series in India was the trailer of the rivalry that has become one of the most fierce in world cricket right now. Top notch banter, fierce sledging and world class cricket have always been a part of India-Australia rivalry.
India’s off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has revealed one such incident when he came out to bat in the Sydney Test in the 2014 Border-Gavaskar Test. India’s spin spearhead revealed the anecdote on What The Duck, Season 2, hosted by comedian Vikram Sathaye.
Brad Haddin Tries To Get Under Ashwin’s Skin:
Ashwin revealed how the former Aussie wicketkeeper tried to unsettle him when he adopted a cautious approach on the fourth day of the morning.
“On fourth day morning, I was batting. And I was like defending Nathan Lyon not taking a lot of chances, just rotating singles. People put in, I didn’t go over the top and all that. So Haddin was standing behind and Warner was at leg gully. And Haddin kept on going for an hour and a half,” Ashwin revealed.
Ashwin further added that Haddin was desperate to hear from him.
“He said, he will remain positive, it’s all talk and no action. Just talks, he is a useless guy and all this was just going for an hour and a half, I just stayed listening, listening, just batting the way I was batting, it was getting to them. So, he sad, ‘Hey, hey. You don’t have a mouth? You don’t talk? What’s with it? You talk only in press conferences,” added the off-spinner.
Ashwin Comes Up With Brilliant Reply:
Not the one to remain silent, Ashwin finally came up with a reply and managed to put an end to the incident with a smiling face.
“If only you could’ve spent the time that you talked or watching press conferences [as in the nets], I think you could’ve made a far better Test cricketer that what you are, Brad,” was Ashwin’s reply.
The Tamil Nadu ace-spinner further said that his reply took Haddin by surprise and the Aussie player could not come up with anything.
“And he’s like, “What? Watch that? I said, look at your average. You walk in an you look like a sitting duck. Everybody has made runs in this series and you’re the one who looks like a tail-ender. Mitchell Johnson got runs. You’ve not made runs,” Ashwin added.
Seeing his teammate losing the sledging battle, David Warner tried to come to Haddin’s rescue but got the same treatment from Ashwin.
“Immediately, David Warner [said], they have a thing of hunting in packs. They believe in that, I don’t know what that means. I think somebody just brainwashed them saying, you hunt in packs. So as soon as I gave it to Haddin, Warner from behind came. ‘Hey, watch that, mate? You watch what you’re saying. I said, ‘Listen, I think you need to watch out for what you’re saying. Then he immediately said, that you’re a bully at home. I said I could be a bully at home but you still lambed to me even in Australia. You’re getting out here as well. So it’s better that you don’t talk because in the second innings again you have a chance of getting out to me. And so as it would have it, he got out in the second innings.”
Well, Ashwin has had the upper hand in his duel with Warner in not only that 2014 series but also in other series too. He had dismissed the Australia opener in the last three innings of the 2014 series and has got his wicket on nine occasions overall.