‘Your Salaries Come From What India Brings To Cricket’: Sunil Gavaskar Slams Hussain, Atherton (Source: PTI)
Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar lashed out at Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton for moaning about India's advantage of playing their matches in Dubai during the ICC Champions Trophy. India refused to tour Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy after which a hybrid model was proposed for the tournament, with India's matches in Dubai. While other teams have played matches at different venues in Pakistan, India have played all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium.
Gavaskar said that England greats should focus on introspecting about their own team's performance rather than moaning about India's advantage. Notably, England were knocked out of the tournament after losing to Australia and Afghanistan.
"I think these are all wise and experienced people. Why don't you actually look at why your team has not qualified? That's what I was going to ask you, sir. Rather than constantly focusing on India, are you even looking at your own backyard? Your players are in such a fragile mental state-they don't seem to care about results as long as they meet certain expectations," Gavaskar told India Today.
"You must care about results. You must care for your country, for any team you play for. If you are playing for your country, the responsibility is even greater. All the time, they are moaning -- 'India has got this, India has got that.' It's constant. We must just ignore it. Let them keep mourning. We have better things to focus on. That is the kind of attitude you must have.
Gavaskar also highlighted the stature of India in world cricket and said that the country makes massive contributions to the sport's growth, saying that Hussain and Atherton's salaries also come from what India brings to world cricket.
"As I said before, it's not even worth commenting on. It really isn't. They are always moaning. They just cannot seem to understand where India stands in international cricket-in terms of quality, income, talent, and, more importantly, in terms of generating revenue. India's contribution to global cricket-through television rights and media revenue-plays a massive role. They need to understand that their salaries also come from what India brings to the world of cricket," said Gavaskar.
Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from Cricket, Sports and around the world.
