The 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy is viewed as one of the most memorable Test series as it saw an injury-hit India staging a comeback to defeat Australia in their own backyard. Under the leadership of Ajinkya Rahane, Team India showed remarkable grit and determination to outclass the hosts. The series saw its own fair bit of drama and before the third Test in Sydney, a few of the Indian stars were asked to stay in the hotel after they were seen at a restaurant.
A video had gone viral on social media, in which the likes of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw, and Navdeep Saini were seen at a restaurant after the win in Melbourne.
After staying indoors in their hotel, these players tested negative for COVID-19 and hence were available for the third Test in Sydney.
Speaking about the incident on Voot Select’s docu-series ‘Bandon Me Tha Dum’, former Australia skipper Tim Paine said: “I mean those four or five guys put the whole Test series at risk. For what? For a bowl a Nando’s chips or wherever they went, like I just find that pretty selfish to be honest.”
Pacer Pat Cummins also spoke about how some members of the Australian team were annoyed seeing Indian stars allegedly “flouting the rules”.
“It did annoy quite a few of the boys, especially the ones who had to spend a Christmas without their families. That was sacrificing quite a bit to be there on the tour to hear that the other team were flouting the rules and not taking it seriously,” said Cummins.
Ajinkya Rahane, who had led India in that series after the 1st Test in Adelaide spoke about how Australia played mind games after losing the Melbourne Test, and how the news was completely wrong of Indian stars breaking Covid rules.
“The players who appeared in the pictures were actually waiting for their takeaway order. Due to bad weather, they had to wait inside. The story that appeared in the news was really wrong. The Australian cricket board said that when you will go to Sydney from Melbourne, no one can come out of the hotel and you have to undergo quarantine. The outside world, especially in Sydney, everything was normal. There was no lockdown, everyone was allowed to move around and the players were asked to stay indoors. We knew that Australia have started to play mind games, especially after what happened in Melbourne,” said Rahane.
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Speaking about the same, Mohammed Siraj said: “Had we lost the 2nd Test, then that would not have happened. After making a comeback from being 36 all out, they were caught off-guard. They suddenly re-introduced quarantine.”
After being bundled out for 36 in the first Test, India went on to win the Tests in Melbourne and Brisbane to win the series 2-1. The visitors had many injuries and even Virat Kohli had gone back home, but this did not hamper the spirit and the Rahane-led side registered a win for the ages.
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