Speaking on ‘Cheeky Singles’, Aakash Chopra recalled a rare instance of a pre-decided “no-sledge” rule in the Indian dressing room:”It’s not usually pre-planned to sledge someone, but I remember one incident where it was pre-decided that it must not be done. This was during India’s tour of the West Indies, in the era of Brian Lara. In our very first team meeting, it was decided to leave him alone. No one would say anything to him. He would get out on his own when it had to happen. But if you sledged and riled him up, then you would be the one responsible for the consequences. And those consequences would mean fielding for 400 runs.”Ambati Rayudu spoke about the unity and intimidation factor in the Mumbai Indians dressing room during his playing days:“When I played for MI, the entire dressing room had an unspoken understanding: if someone tried to have a go at us, three or four players would immediately step in to back their teammate. That’s why very few teams ever tried to take on MI. RCB, on the other hand, would go after everyone. Sometimes they teased me or another MI player once or twice, but eventually, even they realised it wasn’t wise to mess with MI.”Chopra recalled a light-hearted sledging exchange with former Australia opener Matthew Hayden:“One day, Matthew Hayden sledged me even though I wasn’t part of the playing XI in that match. I asked him, ‘Why are you sledging me? I’ve just come onto the ground to field.’ He asked if the pitch was going to turn. I replied, ‘You are the one batting, it’s your job to assess the pitch. I’m just here to field and will head back to the dressing room once I’m done.’ It was completely unprovoked, but that’s the Australian way, it brings the best out of them. Hayden thrives on those moments on the field, and Australians set very high standards. Whatever happens on the ground stays there, and afterwards, they’re happy to share a drink.”Rayudu shared a humorous memory involving MS Dhoni during his Chennai Super Kings days:“Sometimes, Mahi bhai would tell me, just like how a tin roof heats up quickly, I also tend to lose my cool quickly. We would point out to the umpire that a delivery was wide or a no-ball, and he would always tell me, ‘Just focus on batting, don’t raise your hand. I don’t want to lose Fair Play points because of you.’ Interestingly, that same year, he himself walked onto the field, not because of me, but because we were losing.”
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