Former Australian captain Tim Paine has hit out at former cricketers including Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist for praising the West Indies for their Test victory at the Gabba. He believes it wasn’t a big deal for the Pat Cummins-led team and made him uncomfortable.
The West Indies created history on Sunday (January 28) when they defeated Australia by 8 runs and leveled the two-match series. It was a great moment for the Caribbean team because defeating their rivals at the Gabba is not a piece of cake for everyone. Only India before them had achieved the feat and the recent defeat marked their second defeat at the Gabba fortress in the last 33 years.
The West Indies were exceptional with bat and ball as they outplayed their opponents and sent out a stirring statement. Their 8-run victory over Australia earned them high praise from the entire cricket fraternity. Even West Indies cricket legends Brian Lara and Carl Hooper were moved.
Apart from this, Australian greats Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist were also amazed that the West Indies defeated the Pat Cummins-led team. They greeted the team managed by Kraigg Braithwaite and praised the victory saying: “What a moment in the history of the game.”
Tim Paine was not impressed by this and could not understand why the former cricketers were attacking his team. He said it was difficult for him to hear those kinds of comments. Speaking to SEN Tassie, he explained:
“I understand it from a fan’s point of view, it bothers me when I hear previous players comment and almost criticize. I find it very difficult to hear that. It was incredible for the West Indies. It wasn’t great for Australia. It wasn’t a great performance. I just don’t like it. It makes me feel uncomfortable. Why are you attacking your team? The one you played in?
Tim Paine captained the Australian team for 23 Test matches between 2018 and 2021. He took over when Steve Smith was suspended due to the sandpaper gate scandal in 2018. He played 35 Test matches for the team, scoring 1534 runs at an average of 32.63.
Apart from Tim Paine, Ian Healy attacks Australia; He says that he was not very happy with Pat Cummins and how he treated him.
After Australia suffered a defeat against the West Indies, Pat Cummins exchanged jerseys with Shamar Brooks and praised him for taking 7 wickets. Former cricketer Ian Healy did not go easy on the captain because of his antics.
He said Pat Cummins was “the shining light of the West Indies”. He lashed out at Australia, saying they did not do well because they failed to chase down 216 runs. He elaborated:
“You know, I wasn’t very happy with Pat Cummins and how she treated him. He is overly enthusiastic about the West Indies. I like that part, but I don’t think he’s paying enough attention to his team’s poor performance. Do you think they played brilliantly? We only had to chase 216, which means they didn’t play brilliantly until the last day. “Australia allowed them to come into that game in a big way.”
This was also the first time Australia lost a pink ball Test.