Fed up with Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s antics from behind the stumps, an under-fire Australian team has started taking Hindi classes to decipher his messages for the bowler and the fielders.
India’s spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav have run riot against the Australian batsmen, but the world champions feel more than their batsmen’s failure, Dhoni’s Hindi comments are responsible for their horror show in the first two games of the series.
Speaking after the second ODI, Australia captain Steve Smith had said he and his teammates were constantly looking towards the dressing room to seek help while playing the Indian spinners, but it was of no use.
“Maxi (Glenn Maxwell) was looking so settled. He had already hit Kuldeep for a couple of sixes before Dhoni said something like ‘ dande pe daal dena’ which turned the game in India’s favour. Chahal had no clue how to bowl the Maxi, but Dhoni said something in Hindi and our batsman was stumped,” rued David Saker.
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“Dhoni’s conduct does not come under the spirits of the game, and we are sure when India visits Australia next time, our fans and the players will take care of them. But right now we need to win the remaining games, and so we have hired a Hindi teacher to help us understand the language,” he added.
Sitting alongside him was wicketkeeper-batsman Matthew Wade who had been having a tough time in India not only with the bat, but also with the verbal volleys he has been receiving from the Indian players.
“I think learning Hindi is more important for me than learning how to bat. I know, my batting sucks but as far as the likes of Tim Paine and Peter Nevill are in Australia, I don’t have to worry much about selection and so I am focusing only on Hindi,” said Wade who was approached by a dance reality show after his moves on the pitch enthralled the crowd when he was facing the Indian spinners.
“I still don’t know what Jadeja meant when he said Mada****d and Kohli recently told me behen**** at the Eden Gardens. I don’t know their meaning, but I am pretty sure it means something bad as they (Indian players) were laughing when I was walking past them,” added Wade who twisted his ankle while batting.
Meanwhile, Australia’s 12th man, that is the media has also started playing its role. The media was in full flow during the Test series earlier this year and once again took a shot at India skipper Virat Kohli who has made life difficult for the Kangaroos.
Taking a dig at Kohli, The Australian Daily wrote:
“Naive Virat Kohli cannot win without MS Dhoni’s tips from behind the stumps.”
