Former Australia captain Michael Clarke has claimed that he would have been subjected to intense scrutiny had he attended a Coldplay concert on the day his team was playing. Current skipper Pat Cummins was spotted with his wife at the Accor Stadium in Sydney as the Men in Yellow lost the third ODI against Pakistan, conceding the series in the process too.
Cummins and other squad members involved in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar series were recused from the T20I squad as well as the final ODI against Pakistan. As a result, Australia were stranded with a second-string squad led by Josh Inglis for the series decider, where they were ultimately skittled out for just 140.
Former Australia bowler Brett Lee defended Pat Cummins' actions, opining that the captain could do whatever he wished to on his free day. Clarke, too, echoed a similar sentiment, but also said he would have been treated harshly had he done the same thing back in the day.
"I think I would have been absolutely smashed by the media. I think I've said over the last few days how I felt about the Test players missing that last one day. I would have liked to have seen them play that game. There was 11 days from the last one-dayer to the first Test, so I thought they could have all played. If Cricket Australia wanted to rest the fast bowlers, I understand that, but I'm pretty sure the batters that were left out probably could have played," Clarke said on ESPN's cricket show 'Around the Wicket.'
Cummins had opted for a lengthy break following the 2024 T20 World Cup and the Major League Cricket (MLC) 2024, as he missed the white-ball tour of England. He made his return through the Sheffield Shield clash against Victoria on October 25.
"I've got absolutely no beef with Patty" - Michael Clarke
Cummins played a starring role in the series-opener ODI against Pakistan in Melbourne, claiming two wickets and playing an unbeaten cameo in a tense run chase. He endured a forgettable outing as captain in the second ODI in Adelaide, where Pakistan recorded a massive nine-wicket win.
"You get a day off, you can do whatever you want. So, from my perspective, I've got absolutely no beef with Patty going to whether it's Coldplay, a restaurant, whatever he wants to do. From recent history, and my time as Australian captain, I know how the fans see it, and how the media sees it, and probably because we lost the game , and lost the series, you just allow a door for the article to be written, and for people to criticize you," Clarke added in the same discussion.
The Border-Gavaskar series is scheduled to begin from November 22 onwards. The Optus Stadium in Perth will host the first Test, with India looking to secure a hat-trick of wins Down Under.
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