'I certainly wasn't making any excuses': Tim Paine offers clarification after facing backlash over 'sideshow' comment

A day after Tim Paine's comments on the Indian team went viral, the Australia captain clarified himself.

Tim Paine's comments that the Indian cricket team are good at 'niggling' and 'creating sideshows' received a lot of backlash from Team India's huge fanbase. Fans took to social media to draw their daggers out, calling Paine's comments 'lame' and 'tasteless', while some simply felt that the Australia captain was making excuses'.

Australia captain Tim Paine. (Getty Images)

On Thursday, Paine was asked by reporters about his thoughts of losing the Test series to India, to which the 36-year-old responded by saying that the Indian cricket team played mind games, which threw Australia off-guard, and that they distract the opposition by things that 'do not matter'.

"Part of the challenge of playing against India is they're very good at niggling you and trying to distract you with stuff that doesn't really matter and there were times in that series where we fell for that," Paine had told news.com.au.

"The classic example was when they said they weren't going to the Gabba so we didn't know where we were going. They're very good at creating these sideshows and we took our eye off the ball."

A day after Paine's comments went viral, the Australia captain weighed in on the episode. Speaking to former Australia wicketkeeper batsman Adam Gilchrist on the 'Gilly and Goss podcast', Paine clarified that even though he does stick to what he said, the skipper also credited India for playing better than them, while adding that Virat Kohli's team deserved to win.

"I was asked a number of things, and one of those was talking about the challenges of playing against India. One of them was the distraction they can create. There was a lot of talk that they weren't going to Brisbane. They're always changing gloves and bringing out physios and all that can get on your nerves. Just that was one of the things that probably distracted me and took my eye of the ball at times," Paine told Gilchrist.

"But also, I did say that they simply outplayed us and that they deserved to win but they left that one out. The Indian fans have been slamming me on social media. They say that I'm making excuses again but it's all good fun.

"I think anytime an Australian captain speaks publicly is gonna to see the light of the day, there's no doubt about that. Like I said, it was a wide-ranging interview for a long period of time. I certainly wasn't making any excuses. I was asked about some of the challenges of the summer, and I said that was one of them for me."

On the backlash received by the public, Paine said he doesn't mind taking a 'bit of stick' from the Indian fans. This is not the first time people have had a go at Paine. During the Test series, when the Australia skipper dropped three catches on Day 5 of the third Test in Sydney, he was at the receiving ends of a several comments as well. The Australia captain, however, doesn't mind and asserted that he in fact likes Indian fans and their passion for the game.

"I love the Indian fans. I don't mind getting a bit of stick, particularly when you deserve it. They ripped me off when I dropped those catches, I thought that was totally fair. Look, I love the passion, I love how much they love cricket. I love how much they interact and for some people, it is a positive interaction, but most of the time they are into me. But I don’t mind that," Paine added.