Indian captain M.S. Dhoni was unhappy about David Hussey being given not out for handling the ball at the SCG on Sunday.
Dhoni said, “David Hussey was very lucky. He should have been given out. But it's not in my hands. In his judgment he might have been protecting himself but his hands were too far ahead of him. Just like in soccer, if your hands are popping out, you get a penalty irrespective of what's happening. When we were touring in Pakistan, Inzy (Inzamam-ul-Haq) defended himself on his face with his bat but was given out.”
The Indian captain said, “When I asked why Hussey was not given out, the umpire said ‘Even if it was an Indian batsman, I would have given him not out.'” Dhoni felt different umpires could have different views but the same team could be at the receiving end in a series.
Run-out
Dhoni also had strong views on Sachin Tendulkar's controversial run-out. He said, “Vinay was bowling in Brisbane against Australia. We had a slip and no midwicket. The ball went to the point fielder and Vinay crossed over the pitch and was racing towards midwicket for the fielder to have a shy at the stumps. Umpires told Vinay that he was not allowed to do that. But he was doing something which was well within the laws of the game.”
He said, “Today, Brett Lee decided to stop right in front of Tendulkar which meant he had to take a longer way across him. This led to his run-out. It was a bit hard on Tendulkar. Billy Bowden (the standing umpire) should have said something. He was in a position to see where exactly the bowler was and where he stopped because it was very difficult for Simon Taufel (at square-leg) to take a call because he had no clue as to which angle the batsman was running and where Lee actually stopped. Tendulkar was disappointed that the bowler stood in his way.”
Batting debacle
Dhoni said batting debacle was the cause for the Indian defeat. “This is a good line-up but the batsmen are not in form. In the wickets here, where there is bounce and movement, we need to bat differently. We have discussed this in team meetings. The batsmen need to spend time at the crease. Gautam (Gambhir) did that in a couple of games and got 90s. We cannot be chasing scores below 200 to win. But now our No. 8 and 9 are coming in to bat in the 30th over. This is not a good sign.”
He said Tendulkar and Sehwag were still the best men to open for India in the ODIs and added Sehwag needed to be backed. “That's the way he plays. If he gets out playing like that, you cannot blame him.”
Australia's stand-in captain Shane Watson felt David Hussey was not out. “From what I saw, he was only trying to protect himself. That is not out.”
Watson, returning from a calf injury, said he had “fun on the field.” He also said his plans worked. “When I brought a bowler in, he picked up a wicket. It was a good feeling when we took wickets at appropriate times.”
On Tendulkar's run-out, he said, “I do not think he was upset with Lee. I think he was upset with Gambhir's bad call.”
The allrounder said, “I like to captain but would like Michael (Clarke) to come back soon.”
David Hussey was erroneously referred to as Michael Hussey in one instance in this copy. The error has been fixed.
