India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak dismissed talks of India enjoying advantages by playing all their Champions Trophy matches in Dubai. He meanwhile stated that playing good cricket on any pitch is more important than complaining after a defeat.
Former England cricketers Nasser Hussain, Michael Atherton and David Lloyd complained of India having an unfair advantage in the ongoing Champions Trophy. The discussions emerged after the Men in Blue qualified for the semi-final and unlike other teams, they didn’t have to travel to any other city. The current crop of cricketers, Jos Buttler, David Miller and Rassie van der Dussen also complained about the same, stating that India are well aware of the conditions in Dubai and that playing at the same venue throughout the tournament is an advantage.
India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak dismissed all the talks, stating that the team is honouring the schedule, which was made by the ICC. He added that the players practice on different wickets, which is not the same as the ones that played so far. He mentioned that nothing extra was handed to the team and reminded that the schedule was released well in advance.
“I don’t understand what advantage we get from this (pitch). People feel that India gained an advantage after we won the matches. I don’t know what to say about that. We just played according to the draw,” Kotak said in the press conference.
“We obviously practise on a different wicket. We are playing matches on slightly different pitches. We all know that. So, the only thing is that we played here. But that is how the draw is. Nothing else can be done about it. It is not as if, after coming here, something was changed to give us an advantage,” he added.
Kotak went on to take a dig at the current players who complained about India having an unfair advantage. He noted that playing good cricket on any pitch is more important rather than complaining after the defeat. He once again cleared stating that India didn’t enjoy any advantages playing all their matches in Dubai.
“I think in a game, you have to play good cricket every day when you turn up. If you don’t play well, then you can’t complain. And if you do play well, there is no point in debating whether you had an advantage or not. I don’t really think we have an advantage just because we are practising here and playing matches here,” he added.