IPL contracts prevented Aussies from sledging, says Sehwag

New Delhi: Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag on Tuesday said that the Australians held themselves from sledging Virat Kohli and his men during the recently concluded ODI series with the fear of losing out on their IPL contracts.

In an interaction with India TV, Sehwag said that the Australians were, ‘scared’ of sledging the Indians because they might miss out on making a lot of money in the IPL auctions, scheduled to be held next year.

He said, “They (Australian players) are scared because of the next year’s mega IPL auctions. If they had sledged the Indian players in the ODI series, then the Indian franchise owners might think before bidding high for the Australian players. This can also be a reason for them not to get involved in sledging with their Indian counterparts.”

India-Australia clashes in cricket are always intense and high on energy. Their last series against the Indians earlier this year wasn’t free from controversies. In the second Test match played in Bengaluru, Australian skipper Steve Smith signalled the dressing room for help in making a DRS call after being adjudged LBW by on-field umpire Nigel Llong.

This incident was opposed by Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Smith later accepted that he looked towards the dressing room for help and described this entire incident as a, ‘brain fade’ moment. Later the ICC intervened and ensured that things were dealt with in a peaceful manner, without penalising anybody.

The Australians, who are known for their dominance over the opposition on the field lacked that element of aggression and fierceness in the recently concluded ODI series where they were handed a 4-1 thrashing by a ruthless Indian team.

Sehwag said that it might have been the, “brain fade” incident that might have played on their minds which kept them relatively quiet throughout the series. He also said that their team was dependent on two-three players in the ODI series.

“I think the Australian team was playing under pressure because they don’t have all the great players now. Their team was dependent on two or three players – David Warner, Steve Smith and Aaron Finch,” he said.

He also added, “Out of these three players, Smith couldn’t do much. Also, I think the fair amount of criticism which Smith received due to some of his actions, including the “brain fade” moment during the Test series created pressure on them.”