Lehmann: Trott-related sledges off limits

Cricket365
November 30, 2013

Australia coach Darren Lehmann has publicly said that any sledging related to England batsman Jonathan Trott will be off limits during the second Ashes Test in Adelaide, saying there's a line between tough and fair.

Trott left the tour after the first Test due to a stress-related illness, which probably wasn't helped by David Warner calling his batting 'poor and weak' in Brisbane. Warner later apologised, saying he didn't know about Trott's woes.

Lehmann then said that he had discussed the matter with his players, and while no-one was advocating a lack of banter, he said he'd told them to keep in mind where the 'line' was when making personal comments.

Lehmann said: "I have spoken to David, and we have dealt with that in-house. He understands where the line is. I think he said himself he crossed the line. We know where we can go to a certain extent.

"If you cross that line, obviously the ICC take over – and Cricket Australia. We want to play that brand that is quite hard and aggressive, as we always talk about – but not cross the line, play it fair.

"Obviously, we didn't know what was going on with Jonathan Trott – and that certainly won't be talked about in this Test match at all.

"We wish him all the best in his recovery … Jonathan Trott, we're not talking about this Test match."

As for the matter of team selection, Lehmann said the rotation policy favoured in the past is long gone, and Ryan Harris will not be rested for Adelaide if he is fit to play.

Boof said: "If he's fully fit, he'll play. I have said that all along – we're not changing our stance on that. If he is fit to play, he will play.

"We don't rotate (bowlers), mate. If you're fit, you play. The best 11 will play for Australia each and every game."