Indian cricket fans target Phoenix midfielder Tim Payne while attempting to berate Australian captain Tim Paine
20 Jan, 2021 09:00 PM
3 minutes to read
Footballer Tim Payne - pictured playing for Eastern Suburbs - has been copping plenty of abuse from Indian cricket fans. Photo / Photosport
Footballer Tim Payne - pictured playing for Eastern Suburbs - has been copping plenty of abuse from Indian cricket fans. Photo / Photosport
NZ Herald
Wellington Phoenix defender Tim Payne may well be the ruing the day Tim Paine was named in the Australian cricket team.
The similarity between their names has seen the Kiwi footballer berated by Indian fans in the wake of Australia s fourth test loss in Brisbane.
The Indian victory in Australia seems like poetic justice, considering what they have gone through. A crippling loss, the absence of livewire captain, a spate of injuries that robbed them of frontline bowlers, racist taunts from the crowd and vicious sledging from the opponents. All these seem more like ingredients for a soap opera rather a five-day game of Test cricket.
A series in Australia is always a test of skill and character. The bouncy pitches and pace like fire makes for a searching examination of a batsman’s technique. The boisterous crowd and aggressive rivals test the nerves of even the most experienced players.
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It seems years ago now, but when a Josh Hazlewood-inspired Australia bowling attack ripped India’s batting apart in the third innings of the first Test in Adelaide in December, it appeared the four-Test series was already over.
India were skittled for 36 in their second innings after being well-positioned for a win after holding a 53-run first-innings lead. But Hazlewood’s five for eight in five overs, with Pat Cummins adding four for 21, not only won the day, but to almost everyone outside India’s camp, had inflicted irreparable mental damage on India’s batting unit.
Not so fast. Despite the fact that Australia knocked off the 90 needed to win with eight wickets remaining, there was a sense of calm in the Indian camp.