Mickey Arthur’s comments invited a lot of backlash as many former cricketers came forward and criticized him for his choice of words.
The ODI World Cup 2023 match between arch-rivals India and Pakistan has become a talk of the town, not just for the brilliance of the game but also for the post-match comments of the visitors Team Director Mickey Arthur. After the match ended in the favour of the hosts by seven wickets, Arthur mentioned that the atmosphere inside the Narendra Modi Stadium did not feel like it was ‘an ICC event’. Arthur’s comments invited a lot of backlash as many former cricketers came forward and criticized him for his choice of words.
Arthur said: “Look, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t. It didn’t seem like an ICC event to be brutally honest. It seemed like a bilateral series; it seemed like a BCCI event. I didn’t hear ‘Dil Dil Pakistan’ coming through the microphones too often tonight.” Arthur, however, said that the lack of support in the crowd could not be used an excuse for the team’s heavy loss to India.
“So yes, that does play a role, but I’m not going to use that as an excuse because for us it was about living the moment, it was about the next ball and it was about how we were going to combat the Indian, the Indian players tonight,” he added.
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In a recent podcast, former England skipper Michael Vaughan took a dig at Arthur while agreeing with former Australia wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist’s praise for Rohit Sharma.
“Gilly, you are absolutely spot on about Rohit. His tactical awareness out in the middle, just managing the players, as you mentioned [Mohammed] Siraj, giving him an extra over just to give him a boost. But his best move without doubt, the move that won the game and the Pakistan coach alluded to it afterwards, is Rohit obviously said to the DJ, just do not play ‘Dil, Dil, Pakistan’,” said Vaughan in a podcast.
“If you play, Pakistan will win. Do not play that song. Make sure that they don’t hear that inspirational song. That was clever from Rohit. Most captains don’t think about things like that – DJs, music. Rohit is ahead of his time,” he added.
Team India will now be squaring off against New Zealand in their next match on Sunday in Dharamsala.
