Team India started the tour of Australia on a perfect note but were handed a reality check in the Day-Night affair, which was played at the Adelaide Oval. The team endured a tough 10-wicket hammering as the hosts made a strong comeback to square things up in the five-match series. While it was an all-round effort by the entire team, Travis Head in particular had a big role to play in Australia's win. The batter, who has been one of India's biggest nemesis, scored 140 off 141 balls, which helped his side claim a healthy 157-run first innings lead.
India failed to respond strongly to Australia's challenge, leaving the hosts with a 19-run target, which they chased with no discomfort. The match also witnessed a heated moment involving Head and Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj, following which the duo also faced reprecussions. Siraj after dismissing Head got into a heated exchange with the batter as both parties engaged in verbal volleys, making it one of the top highlights from the match.
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Siraj was fined 20 per cent of his match fee by the ICC and one demerit point has been added to his disciplinary record. Head didn't recieve any monetary penalty but was handed one demerit point by the international cricket governing body.
Ravi Shastri, ex-cricketer and former India coach, weighed-in on the matter in his column for CODE Sports. Shastri under whom India won consecutive Test series in Down Under expressed that both cricketers are mature enough to handle the business and leave the chapter behind. He, however, was quick to add that this sort of aggression is expected of a fast bowler, especially if he is hit for a six.
“I’m sure Siraj and Head are mature individuals who will deal with it and the dust would have settled already,” Shastri wrote.
“If anything, I wouldn’t have expected anything else from a fast bowler after he’d been hit for a six. Siraj was letting off some steam. That’s the fast bowler’s temperament. You want it to be like that. When I was playing, my philosophy was to give it back as good as you get. And it’s exactly what I would tell my players when I was coaching India in Australia. Do not hold back one bit," he added.
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Shastri urged the team not to take a backward step, comparing how the standard was when he was incharge of the dressing room. “Do not take even one backward step. It then became the team’s philosophy and everyone from Virat Kohli to Rishabh Pant and every member of the squad was prepared to give it back to the Aussies," said Shastri.
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