Stung by criticism of his behaviour during the recently-concluded Test series against the West Indies, Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has vowed never to repeat the “silly” actions in future.
Watson was widely criticised for his “manic celebration” after dismissing West Indies captain Chris Gayle during the Perth Test. He had defended himself immediately after the match but in hindsight, the imposing all—rounder said he would not repeat the behaviour again.
“I never wanted anything like that to happen,” Watson told ‘The Sunday Telegraph’
“It was just raw emotion that came out of me. It was nothing that was planned. For me, I had to sit back and think, ’well, that was raw emotion and how am I going to control it next time?’ The last thing I want is for it to happen again,” he said.
“In the end, I got a lot of people offside, that’s the last thing I wanted to do. I don’t want to look silly and disrespectful to the opposition. I never want that to happen again. It’s not an ideal situation, people commenting on me as a person (from that incident), and I know I’m continuing to develop as a person and cricketer in front of a national audience,” he added.
The 28-year-old said he doesn’t want his overall persona to be judged on the basis of his on—field behaviour.
