If someone had talked to me like Paine did to Ashwin, I'd have lost all respect for them, says David Lloyd

In a column written for The Daily Mail, Lloyd wrote that Paine's act from behind the stumps has left him ‘flabbergasted’.

Former English cricketer and veteran commentator David Llyod, also known as ‘Bumble’, has taken a harsh dig at Australian Test captain Tim Paine for his on-field banter with Indian off-spinner R Ashwin on the final day of the Sydney Test.

Ashwin, along with Hanuma Vihari, batted with incredible grit against the Australian attack on Monday to save the third Test, while chasing a mammoth 407-run target. After the hosts failed to break down India's resolve, their captain started poking Ashwin from behind the stumps.

In a column written for The Daily Mail, Lloyd wrote that Paine's act from behind the stumps has left him ‘flabbergasted’. He stated that if someone had talked to him that way, he would have ‘lost all the respect for them’.

“It’s up to Paine now to control his players, but first he has to set an example. Put it like this: if someone had talked to me like he did to Ravichandran Ashwin, I’d have lost all respect for them,” Lloyd wrote.

“The way he was carrying on behind the stumps left me flabbergasted.

“I played the game for two decades, and sledging didn’t really exist. People go on about Ian Chappell and his Australia team, but what the likes of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson said to us was just banter. They never said anything that made me not want to have a beer with them after the game,” he added.

“How can Ashwin want to share a drink with the Australians after Paine was trash-talking him the way he did?

“You’d have thought the Australians would watch their Ps and Qs after that farce with the sandpaper. But they just don’t seem to learn. What on earth is wrong with them?” Lloyd signed off.