Michael Clarke defends Gautam Gambhir’s aggression

Ahead of the marquee series between India and Australia, Indian Head Coach Gautam Gambhir made a few spicy comments in the press conference. While there has been a backlash from major sections among social media and a few pundits, former Australian cricketer Michael Clarke defends Gambhir’s aggression.
“I think it becomes harder these days because you spend more time playing with opposition players. I think when I played or before the IPL, it was a lot easier, you could see each other as much, and you weren’t in the same team. But I think there’s no doubt. I think that’s why India has had success in Australia the last couple of times,” Clarke said.
A lot of the Indian players play alongside the Australian players in the IPL however, Clarke believes India has been able to diversify it well and it has been the reason behind their success in Australia in the past. “I think there’s been a very clear line in the sand from all the players that when they step into this country. There are no friends on the field. Off the field, fine, but on the field, you’re playing for your country. You’re not playing in the same IPL team.” he said
However, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar was unhappy with Gautam Gambhir’s approach and wrote his views on X (Formerly known as Twitter). “Just watched Gautam Gambhir in the press conference. May be wise for @BCCI to keep him away from such duties, let him work behind the scenes. He does not have the right demeanor nor the words when interacting with them. Rohit & Agarkar, much better guys to front up for the media.”
However, on the contrary, Clarke hoped Australia would have a similar attitude, “I’d like to think Australia will have the same attitude, you know. It’s not what you say. It’s not about sledding, but it’s what you do. It’s your intent, it’s your attitude. It’s having your teammate’s back when required. So I’d be surprised if Australia weren’t in the same situation. And I think that’ll help make this a great series. I think it’ll be competitive on the field, and you’ll see Australia want to win and so do India.”