Following the win against India at home in Adelaide Oval on Sunday, Australia skipper Pat Cummins shared his thoughts on the verbal spat between left-hand batter Travis Head and Mohammed Siraj during the day-night (pink-ball) Test match. Adding an element of drama and emotion to the hotly-contested Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Siraj aggressively sent off Head after cleaning him up following a counter-attacking century that severely depleted Indian bowlers and the team’s chances of winning. As Siraj aggressively gestured to the Aussie suggesting it was time for him to take a walk back to the pavillion, Head also returned back the favour with some words. Siraj was heavily booed by the Australian crowd following Head’s dismissal.

“To be honest, they (India) can do whatever they want (I’m) more worried about our boys but like always I thought our boys’ behaviour was excellent this week like it seems to be every week. Travis Head is vice-captain of the team. He’s a big boy, he can talk for himself,” Cummins said in the post-match press conference as quoted by cricket.com.au.

Earlier, Rohit also defended Mohammed Siraj’s on-field aggression with Travis Head, describing it as a ‘motivator’ while underlining the importance of respecting the game’s spirit.

Siraj was criticised for his actions following the dismissal of the left-hand batter, who was castled by a ripper from the pacer that saw the end of his 140-run knock.

“There’s a thin line between being aggressive and crossing the limit. As captain, it’s my responsibility to ensure we don’t cross that line. A word or two here and there doesn’t make a huge difference,” the Mumbai-born cricketer said.

“He [Siraj] likes to get into the battle. It gives him success. As the captain, it’s my job to back that aggression. Obviously, there’s a fine line-we don’t want to cross anything that disrespects the game. In the past, we’ve seen many cricketers thrive in such battles, and Siraj is definitely one of them,” the skipper added.

The series stands tied at 1-1 and the two sides will now head to Brisbane for the third Test, scheduled to start on Saturday, December 14.

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