“At times, players use abusive language when they should be acknowledging the applause of the crowd and their team mates. These days, because of the replays, it is very easy to lip-read what they are saying,” he said, and held up the examples of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid as what should be done. “They may not always be smiling after scoring a century because of tiredness, but they always acknowledge the almighty, their team mates and the crowd; they’re not abusive.”

But the 59-year-old former batsman ruled out coach Gary Kirsten’s assessment that IPL-induced fatigue was a reason for Team India’s early exit from the World T20 in England. “We were outplayed at the tournament,” he said.

When asked about the Indian batsmen’s problem with the short ball, he said that it wasn’t a cause of worry. “India went to West Indies after playing a format where one doesn’t get too many short ball. T20 is mostly played on the front foot, so they took time adjusting,” he said. India had been peppered with short bowling in the World T20 as well, particularly by West Indies and England in their all-important Super Eights matches.