‘I’ll tell him to check his emails’: Paine answers journo’s phone during press conference
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You have to hand it to Tim Paine. Under the cosh from a crippling two days in the field with India hammering Australia in the fourth Test at the SCG, he has at least managed to maintain a sense of humour.
Key points:
- Tim Paine told a journalist to 'check your emails' after fielding a call to a mobile phone on the microphone table
- Paine otherwise had to account for another terrible day in the field for Australia against a rampant India
- India declared at a whopping 7-622 on day two at the SCG
At his end-of-day press conference following a cricketing hiding in Sydney, Paine was interrupted mid-sentence when a journalist's mobile phone began ringing on the microphone table.
In one motion, Paine looked down and scooped up the phone, casually answering it as the press pack chortled away.
"Tim Paine speaking … who is it, sorry?" he asked.
"Who are you after? He's in the middle of a press conference. Can I get him to call you back?"
Paine's secretarial duties were polished to the last, relaying the message from the mysterious Casey effortlessly.
"Alright, no worries. I'll tell him to check his emails. Alright, thanks Casey, cheers," he said.
"Check your emails," he reminded the journalist in question with a smirk, hanging up.
But the press conference quickly returned to the far more sobering topic of the state of play, with Australia miles behind a rampant India after Cheteshwar Pujara (193) and Rishabh Pant (159 not out) pulverised the hosts' demoralised bowling attack before the tourists declared at 7-622.
Paine would not go as far as blaming Australia's batsmen-friendly pitches, but did admit a lack of bounce was not helping in efforts to remove Pujara this series, who has scored three centuries in four Tests.
"I thought in Perth where we got some bounce in the wicket we saw how we can get him out — caught behind the wicket twice," Paine said on the West Australian Test, which was the only time Pujara fell cheaply (24 and 4).
"That was one of the things we thought we'd get a bit more in the series but we probably haven't.
"With Pujara if you're not swinging the ball he's extremely hard to get out. Early in the innings you're trying to hit his stumps and his pad.
"In the form he's in he's not missing too many. When the wicket is like it is and you can't swing the ball not many players miss them."
Paine said more than anything else, it was bad bowling to blame for the loss at the MCG and the hammering his side has copped so far in Sydney.
"It is what it is. We can't really control it [the state of Australia's pitches], we just have to play better than what we have," Paine said.
"The pitch here and the pitch in Melbourne didn't make us bowl as badly as we probably have in this Test. We've just been outplayed.
"Both teams have had similar conditions.
"But from me, who also loves watching Test cricket, I'm sure guys would like to see a bit more pace and bounce in Australia. Something we've probably become accustomed to in Australia."
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ABC .net
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