India’s boycott threat revealed

A standoff over allowing families to travel with players almost led to India cancelling the Border-Gavaskar series before it began.

India’s Ravichandran Ashwin revealed how vulnerable the series was to a boycott

A standoff over allowing families to travel with players almost led to India cancelling the Border-Gavaskar series before it began, but became part of a theme among a team that helped it pull off one of the greatest victories by a visiting side.

A series of celebratory and lighthearted videos featuring spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and fielding coach Ramakrishnan Sridhar recount the travails of the team and provide a fascinating glimpse into the mentality which led to the achievement.

From the start the Indians believed Australia was making life difficult for them but resolved with the urging of coach Ravi Shastri to meet the challenges head on.

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The approach and constant injuries saw the team rally and refresh after a massive loss in Adelaide for what they termed “Mission in Melbourne” before holding on for an incredible draw in Sydney and victory in Brisbane.

Ashwin, who attacked the crowds in Sydney after claims of racial abuse toward new player Mohammed Siraj, confirmed reports in The Australian at the time that the side was not happy to have quarantine conditions become stricter midway through the tour.

“You are already stuck here in a three-and-a-half month bubble, you are here now. Here we have a soft bubble,” he said recounting the early part of the tour.

“If you are quarantined once for 14 days, you can go out for coffee, you can have lunch, you can go for a walk, you can go out for movies.

“They said all this and suddenly when it was 1-1 they ordered us ‘stay in your room, guys’.

“How can you stay in a room? I was here with my kids as well. They are mischievous as well.

“It was a difficult and challenging time for all of us. Media was going crazy.”

Both Ashwin and the fielding coach Sridhar recorded the videos in their native Tamil but English captions attempt to capture the nature of the exchanges.

Sridhar added his own take to the events when he revealed the tour was almost abandoned before it started after the side was told before boarding the plane for Sydney that families were not welcome.

“Do you know something? When we were quarantining in Dubai, before the last 48 hours, they suddenly announced that the families were not allowed,” he said.

“So, even before the Australian tour started they had started their sledging. Their off field sledging.

“We had calls during night time. And then there was time difference as well and we had to co-ordinate between Dubai, India and Australia.

“Sorry. Families are not allowed. Australian government is strict on this.”

Ashwin said his wife joked she would leave him when she learned of the condition.

“It had been six months since we saw each other, she had landed at Dubai just then with my kids,” he said.

“Before I could even finish hugging them this news of families not being allowed hit us.”

Both commended Shastri who stood up for his players at this point and later when the biosecurity conditions changed.

“There were seven players who had brought their families and kids. How to convey this to them?” Sridhar said.

“Then came Ravi Shastri into the scene. He then set up a Zoom meeting all of us were in our rooms during quarantine. ‘If my players’ family are not allowed then we won’t be going to Australia as well’.”

Ravi told the BCCI who was negotiating with Cricket Australia and the NSW government over the entry conditions that he had been coming to this country for 40 years and knew how to bargain with its powerbrokers.

“Australian government worked overnight during the weekend to get the permission,” Sridhar claimed.

Shastri confirmed the story to The Australian.

Ashwin said the Indian players felt shunned by the opposition in the hotel in Sydney.

“Both teams were in the same bubble,” he said. “But when the Australian players were going in the lift they won’t allow Indian players inside the lift. Seriously guys? We felt so bad at the time. We are in the same bubble.”