Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth has slammed Michael Clarke's claims that the Australian team sucked up to Virat Kohli and Co. during 2018/19 Test series Down Under to get IPL contracts.
Srikkanth emphasized that sledging cannot help teams win matches and no one can score runs or get wickets through it.
"You do not win matches just by sledging. Aussie's loss is a loss, his (Clarke) statement was ridiculous I would say," Srikkanth said while speaking on Star Sports 'Cricket Connected' show.
"If you ask Nasser Hussain or Sir Vivian Richards who are experienced players, you can never score runs or get wickets through sledging.
"You need to play good cricket and showcase determination; you need to bowl well to get wickets and bat well to achieve targets. Sledging cannot help in any way according to my opinion," he added.
Earlier, Clarke claimed that current Australian players were too scared to "sledge" Kohli in the 2018/19 Test series and in order to protect their million dollars IPL deals. The former Aussie skipper said, the Tim Paine and Co. "sucked up" to the India captain which resulted in their cricket becoming "soft".
Veteran Indian batsman VVS Laxman also gave his take on the same incident and said players can't win IPL contracts by just being nice to a particular player.
"Just by being nice to someone doesn't get you a place in IPL. Any franchise will look at the player's calibre and value add to the team, which gives them desired results by winning matches/tournaments," Laxman said while speaking on the same show.
"These are the kind of players who get IPL contracts. So just being nice to someone will not earn you a spot in the IPL," he added.
Kohli's men had become the first-ever Indian team to register a Test series win in Australia in 2018-19. It was the first time since 1947, that India were able to register a Test series victory in Down Under as they defeated the Tim Paine-led side 2-1 in the four-match rubber.
(With IANS Inputs)
