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After Australia’s victory over India at Adelaide Oval on Sunday, the skipper Pat Cummins shared his views on the verbal exchange between Travis Head and Mohammed Siraj during the day-night (pink-ball) Test. By adding drama and intensity to the heated Border-Gavaskar Trophy contest, Siraj angrily sent off Head after dismissing him following a brilliant counter-attacking century, which had significantly reduced India’s chances of winning.
After Head was clean bowled, Siraj made a provocative gesture as if signaling the Australian to walk off, to which Head responded with some of the words of his own. Following the Head's dismissal, Siraj was loudly ridiculed by the Australian crowd.
"In all honesty, they (India) can do whatever they like. I’m more concerned with how our boys conduct themselves, and, as always, I thought our players’ behavior was excellent this week, as it tends to be. Travis Head is the vice-captain of the team. He's mature enough to handle himself," Cummins stated in the post-match press conference, as quoted by cricket.com.au.
Previously, Indian captain Rohit Sharma had defended Siraj’s on-field aggression towards Head, by describing it as a 'motivator,' while emphasizing the importance of maintaining respect for the spirit of the game.
Siraj faced censure for his actions by following the dismissal of Head, who was bowled out for 140 runs by a superb delivery from the pacer.
“There’s a fine line between being aggressive and crossing the limit. As captain, it’s my duty to ensure we don’t cross that line. A word or two doesn’t make much of a difference,” stated the Mumbai-based cricketer.
“He [Siraj] enjoys getting into the battle. It gives him success. As captain, I back that aggression, but there’s a fine line—we don’t want to disrespect the game. In the past, we've seen many cricketers thrive in such battles, and Siraj is definitely one of them,” the captain elaborated.
The series is currently tied at 1-1, with the 3rd Test is all set to begin in Brisbane on Saturday, December 14.