AUS v IND 2018-19: Sunil Gavaskar slams criticism that India's triumph came against a weakened Australian team

Not India’s fault that defeated Australian team was without David Warner and Steve Smith, says Sunil Gavaskar

Virat Kohli became first Asia captain to win Test series in Australia | Getty Images

Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar slammed critics, who are claiming that Virat Kohli and his boys made history against a weakened Australian team, by saying that it wasn’t India’s fault that the hosts were without David Warner and Steve Smith in the just-concluded Test Series.

On Monday (January 7), Kohli-led Indian Cricket Team made the history by winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2-1 after a 71-year long wait in Australia with the final match of the four-match series Down Under ending in a draw at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

Many believe that the absence of Australian batting mainstays Warner and Smith had given an extra edge to India in the Test series, which left Gavaskar furious at the critics, saying Cricket Australia should have handed them shorter bans for their role in the ball-tampering scandal if they wished the duo make it to the squad against Kohli and his team in the Test series.  

Gavaskar said during a post-match show on 'Sony Six', “It is not India's fault that this Australian team was without David Warner and Steve Smith. Australia could have handed them shorter bans but obviously, it was thought that one-year bans would be good for Australian cricket, that they needed to be made an example for anyone who brings the game into disrepute.”

Meanwhile, former Indian skipper lavished praise on Kohli and his brigade after historic Test series success, saying it was fittest, unstoppable and consistency personified side who deserved to win this Test series in Australia.

He further added on the same, “India played the opposition they were presented with and it's a great achievement for them.”

He also said that current Indian team’s world-class fitness standards are one of the biggest reasons for their success and that separates Kohli and his boys from other sides in the world.

Gavaskar signed off by saying, “It is not that teams that I was a part of didn't play to win. We also played to win but this team is at a different level in terms of fitness and the captain has shown the way. In our times, we used to do our individual routines.”

(With Press Trust of India Inputs)

 
 

By Rashmi Nanda - 07 Jan, 2019

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