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Cricket legend savages India over Virat Kohli 'mind games'

Chris Young
·Sports Reporter
·3-min read
Virat Kohli is pictured playing for India in a Test match.
Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli is expecting the birth of his first child in January as the BCCI have asked Cricket Australia to reschedule the New Year's Test. (Photo by PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images)

Australian cricket legend Allan Border says Cricket Australia should knock back any potential request from the Indian team to move the New Year’s Test from its traditional spot to January 7.

India has asked for the follow-up to the Boxing Day Test be pushed back in order to give players more rest in between games.

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The request could also impact team captain Virat Kohli, who announced alongside wife Anushka Sharma several weeks ago that they were expecting their first child in January.

The Indian skipper could be required to return home to be present for his first baby’s birth.

Asked about the request on Fox Sports, Border accused the Indian side of playing ‘mind games’ with the request and urged Cricket Australia to reject it outright.

The former Australian Test captain said the Boxing Day and New Year Tests had been played on the same schedule for years without incident.

“I don’t think it should be a negotiated scenario,” Border said.

“If it’s necessary because of what is happening globally with the virus then fair enough, but if it’s just because they want a bit of a spell between Boxing Day and the New Year’s Test match, then that’s rubbish.

“We’ve been doing this for how many years now, back-to-back Test matches?

“It works a treat through that Christmas-New Year period and I wouldn’t be comfortable with it moving just because India want a couple more days off.

“I think they’re just playing mind games.”

Allan Border unimpressed by India’s request

Border, who played 156 Test matches for Australia, said it was a double standard from India to expect the Cricket Australia to alter the calendar to suit them.

Pushing the New Year’s Test back could potentially interfere with the Big Bash League, as well as leading to a potential clash with the Australian Open.

“They consider themselves the strength of world cricket, and financially that is the case so they do have a fair say in things,” Border said.

The Indian cricket team is pictured walking from the field after facing New Zealand.
The Indian cricket team has requested a later start date for the annual New Year's Test match in order to get some extra rest between that at the Boxing Day Test. (Photo by Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images)

“But if the roles were reversed, we wouldn’t have much say in the itinerary, it would just be put in front of us and these are the dates that we’re going to play.

“You can negotiate as much as you like but these are traditional dates that everyone knows have been in the calendar forever, so to start negotiating now… it’s a tough one.

“I wouldn’t be bowing down to it – we’ve got traditional dates, let’s stick with them.”

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