Michael Clarke's 'Australia being nice to Virat Kohli' comment ridiculous: Kris Srikkanth

Former Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke recently stated that Australian cricketers are scared of sledging Indian players out of fears of losing out on lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) contracts. He also singled out Indian captain Virat Kohli by saying that the Australians have taken a soft approach towards the aggressive batsman so that they can win over a spot in his Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) side in the IPL. Michael Clarke’s comments were soon contradicted by current Australian Test captain Tim Paine and No.1 ranked bowler Pat Cummins among several former Indian cricketers as well.

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Kris Srikkanth slams Michael Clarke for Virat Kohli comments

Former Indian cricket captain Kris Srikkanth criticised Michael Clarke’s statement by describing it as “ridiculous”. While speaking on a Star Sports show, Srikkanth said teams do not simply win cricket matches through sledging. He added that in order to “get wickets” and “achieve targets” on the field, one must need to play good cricket.

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Kris Srikkanth’s reply on Michael Clarke was also backed by another former Indian cricketer and Test specialist VVS Laxman. VVS Laxman said that just by being “nice” will not guarantee anyone a spot in the IPL. He further said that IPL franchises look at the "calibre" of cricketers before picking them up at the auction.

Also Read | Tim Paine Says Australians Going Soft On Virat Kohli For Hefty IPL RCB Deals Claims by Michael Clarke on Virat Kohli 'not True'

IPL 2020 postponed news

The IPL 2020 was scheduled to launch on March 29 with a match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings. However, the highly-contagious coronavirus pandemic forced the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to delay the event on account of the three-week lockdown (till April 14) in the country. Since the lockdown has now been extended till May 3, the Indian cricket body has once again postponed IPL 2020 until further notice.

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