Australia’s chairman of selectors George Bailey has advised players to avoid a public slanging match with former stars, in a bid to defuse tension between the eras.
The feud has left players with a sour taste, with some unsure who they can trust among the golden generation who have been critical of their performance, so disappointed have they been with the response from Justin Langer’s high-profile friends and backers over the former coach’s departure.
The closer relationship former stars have with current players has traditionally aided their media roles but, as pointed out by one source close to the team, the tension jeopardises this.
Players have held their counsel over what they believe is retaliation for their perceived role in Langer’s messy exit as coach, but frustration has been mounting behind the scenes.
Gilchrist was one of Langer’s most vocal supporters last year, but this week adopted a more sympathetic tone towards the team, as seen on Thursday night in his defence of Glenn Maxwell, whose comments that players would not dwell on the early T20 World Cup exit due to the busy schedule was seen by some as a lack of care.
Steve Smith this week defended coach Andrew McDonald against criticism from former champion Matthew Hayden, one of Langer’s closest friends, over the team’s preparation for the T20 World Cup. Hayden was a member of the Pakistan coaching set-up which lost last week’s final to England.
“I’m sure the planning was there, but it didn’t come together for us, which was disappointing,” Smith said.
“Obviously we only lost one game and it was a big one and big losses in World Cups, when it comes to run rate and whatever, really holds you back. And that was the case unfortunately.
“So outside of that, I don’t think we played bad cricket. We won every other game that we played and obviously the washout against England wasn’t ideal as well. So disappointing to have not gone further. But that’s the game sometimes, particularly T20 cricket.”
Smith disagreed with Mark Waugh’s assertion there was a disconnect between players and fans, amid low crowds for Australia’s matches.
“That’s probably not for me to judge, that’s for fans to talk about. But I feel like we’re getting the support out there,” Smith said.
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