Sunil Gavaskar hits back at former England captains after their comment on India’s Dubai advantage in Champions Trophy 2025

Gavaskar advised Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton to stop “moaning” and focus on their team’s performance.

Sunil Gavaskar took a swipe at former England captains after they commented on India’s Dubai advantage in Champions Trophy 2025. Gavaskar advised Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton to “focus on their backyard.” Former England captains Hussain and Atherton commented about “India’s undeniable advantage” in the ongoing series.

Sunil Gavaskar hits it back at former England captains for their comment on India’s advantage in Champions Trophy 2025.

Pakistan interim coach Aaqib Javed briefly touched on the topic after their group-stage defeat to India in Dubai, but Hussain and Atherton’s discussion gave rise to the raging debate. Since then, injured skippers of Australia, Pat Cummins, and South Africa batter Rassie van der Dussen have called the scheduling of the Champions Trophy “a huge advantage to India.” Sunil Gavaskar has now hit back at those commenting on India’s advantage in the series. Speaking to India Today, he said, “I think these are all wise and experienced people. Why don’t you actually look at why your team has not qualified? That’s what I was going to ask you, sir. Rather than constantly focusing on India, are you even looking at your own backyard? Your players are in such a fragile mental state-they don’t seem to care about results as long as they meet certain expectations.”

“Let them keep moaning.”

Gavaskar added, “You must care about results. You must care for your country, for any team you play for. If you are playing for your country, the responsibility is even greater. All the time, they are moaning — ‘India has got this, India has got that.’ It’s constant. We must just ignore it. Let them keep moaning. We have better things to focus on. That is the kind of attitude you must have.”

Sunil Gavaskar then went on to say, “As I said before, it’s not even worth commenting on. It really isn’t. They are always moaning. They just cannot seem to understand where India stands in international cricket-in terms of quality, income, talent, and, more importantly, in terms of generating revenue. India’s contribution to global cricket-through television rights and media revenue-plays a massive role. They need to understand that their salaries also come from what India brings to the world of cricket.”