Tim Paine has classy reply to angry New Zealand scribe slamming him for supporting India

Australia's Test skipper Tim Paine, on Monday, had backed India to win the maiden World Test Championship Final. In a video shared on cricket.com.au's Twitter handle, the Australian stumper had surprisingly reckoned that it will be Virat Kohli-led India who will win the WTC Final pretty comfortably if they played anywhere near their best. Tim Paine's support for India didn't go down well with a New Zealand-based journalist though, who mocked the cricketer over his batting record.

Kiwi journalist mocks Tim Paine, Aussie skipper shuts him down with epic reply

In response to Paine's comments, the journalist, who was evidently unhappy with the Australian Test captain for backing India, tried to troll him by mentioning how he doesn't have a Test century to his name yet. The Kiwi scribe wrote, "Big talk from someone who’s never scored a test century." However, Paine didn't lose his calm and gave a classy to the reporter and shut him down. Paine said that those are just his views based on playing against both teams.

Paine backing the Men in Blue for the India vs New Zealand WTC Final came as a surprise considering how his side was beaten by India at home and the events that occurred in the series. During the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under, Paine was involved in multiple sledging incidents with a number of Indian players, particularly R Ashwin. 

On the final day of the India vs Australia 3rd Test, Paine got desperate in his side's quest to secure a win at the SCG, which is why they resorted to dirty sledging and cheap tactics. The Paine vs Ashwin rivalry began when the Aussie skipper was trying to get under the skin of the off-spinner by provocative chatter. However, Ashwin was also sharp with his response as he shut down the Australian skipper with an epic reply.

While Ashwin was batting, Paine who was standing behind the stumps, quipped that he cannot wait to see Ashwin at the Gabba where the fourth and final match was going to be played. Ashwin, who is known for his wit, cleverly replied saying that he cannot wait to see Paine in India which also would be the last series of his career. With that, Ashwin also took a dig at Paine's age and strength left to continue playing cricket. The Paine vs Ashwin rivalry was eventually won by the Indian spinner as the visitors created history by beating Australia at the Gabba and clinched the series 2-1.

Meanwhile, the India vs New Zealand WTC Final will be played from June 18-22 at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. A Reserve Day (June 23) has been set to ensure five full days of play. The Reserve Day will only be used if lost playing time cannot be recovered through the normal provisions of making up lost time each day. Notably, there will be no additional day’s play if a positive result is not achieved after five full days of play and the match will be declared a draw in such a scenario.

The winner of the high-voltage India vs New Zealand game will be crowned maiden World Test Championship winners. Notably, under Virat Kohli's captaincy, Team India haven't managed to win a single ICC event. The Men in Blue have a golden opportunity to put an end to their ICC trophy drought by beating the Kane Williamson-led side.

SOURCE: CRICKET.COM.AU