Matthew Hayden reckons India-Australia rivalry is like a Holyfield vs Tyson bout

Former Australian opening batsman Matthew Hayden has been following the series from close quarters as he has been doing TV commentary for the broadcasters. He reckons that the quality of pitches that were presented in the first two Tests at Pune and Bangalore weren’t so good.

He believed that the rivalry between the two nations is intense and the controversies are bound to take place but at the end of the day, both get on with the game producing some high-class cricket. In an interview, he shared his insights on the ongoing Test series.

When asked about the quality of cricket that the series has produced versus the controversies that arose, he believed that the standards have been high and the issues were very well handled by the two boards.

“The quality has been high but, with the exception of the last Test (Ranchi), the quality of the wickets wasn’t high. The last Test didn’t see a high scoring rate, but both teams had the chance to grab hold of the opportunities and, by doing so, take the Test and forge ahead in the series. Both didn’t.” Hayden was quoted by the Telegraph as saying.

“I expect the Dharamsala wicket to be good for batsmen and the captain winning the toss would definitely bat and try and take the initiative as the series is 1-1. My view is that wickets should never assist spinners from the first hour of a Test. Equally, wickets must not be wet and shouldn’t be assisting seam bowling even on the third morning,” he said.

An aggressive player himself Haydos said when the situation is mounting he doesn’t expect either of Indian skipper Virat Kohli or his Aussie counterpart Steve Smith to back down but it is for both the boards to get into action if there is a need and dismantle the situation like they did after the Bangalore Test.

“I wouldn’t want either Virat Kohli or Smith to back down in a tight situation, but Cricket Australia (CA) and your Board (BCCI0 handled the DRS flare-up in Bangalore quickly and very well. Some things are best settled on the field and I believe the DRS issue was tackled there and immediately afterwards. But, when it did escalate, the Boards pulled things back. You will always have occasions when players or the administrators or the media will have an agenda. Also, at home and being ranked No.1 on the Test ladder, there’s been pressure on Virat to win,” he added.

He also reckoned that the comments from CA chief executive James Sutherland on Virat Kohli that he doesn’t know the spelling of Sorry could have been avoided.

“Neither you nor I have heard the interview to a radio station, but read either the transcript or the interview’s interpretation by the media. Mind you, I’m not defending James. At best it was a throwaway line, totally avoidable in the circumstances. The timing really was bad for any comment at all from James,” the 45-year-old added.

When asked about the rivalry between the two countries and the several controversies that emerge each time these two face off against each other, he said the two nations are the best in the game and there will be occasions where differences will take place.

“India and Australia are the two best cricketing nations and it’s pretty much like an Evander Holyfield vs Mike Tyson bout, with one of the prized fighters trying to have a go at the other at the joint media conference itself. Great for the promoters, though. At another level, I do believe that the Indian and Australian teams are part of the extended family which is cricket and, as in any family, there will be occasions when there are differences. But the bottom line is that the family gets back together,” Hayden added.