"You have been a bunny" - When Gautam Gambhir taunted Ricky Ponting during BGT 2008
Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir was never one to back down from anyone during his playing career that spanned over a decade. This was particularly true when Australia was the opposition, considering their reputation for riling up players.
The former Indian left-hander was involved in a controversial elbowing incident with Aussie all-rounder Shane Watson in the 2008 Border-Gavaskar Trophy at home. Gambhir was banned from the next game following the incident despite later stating that the act wasn't intentional.
Yet, when asked about the player he enjoyed sledging the most, Gambhir told Star Sports in an interview in 2020:
"Ricky Ponting in 2008. When Anil Kumble was the captain, in that series where I got a double hundred. In the first Test match at Bangalore, he said that I had not set the world on fire while I was batting and he was fielding at silly point. And I said 'Neither have you to be honest in India. You have been a bunny.' And his record says that as well that he has been a bunny in India."
Gambhir was the leading run-scorer of the 2008 home Test series against Australia, finishing with 463 runs at an average of 77.16 in three games. However, the now-43-year-old enjoyed only mixed results against Australia during his Test career with an average of 37.38 in nine matches.
How did Ricky Ponting perform in India during his career?
Ricky Ponting is among the most accomplished batters in Test history with over 13,000 runs, including 41 centuries in 168 matches. The former right-hander also enjoyed incredible success against India in Tests with 2,555 runs at an average of 54.36, including eight centuries in 29 matches.
However, Ponting never conquered the Asian giants on their home soil, struggling against the turning ball on spin-friendly pitches. The former captain averaged a dismal 26.48 in Tests in India with a lone century in 14 matches.
While the red-ball struggles on Indian pitches were true as Gambhir mentioned, Ponting fared considerably better in the white-ball formats in India.
The champion Aussie scored 1,736 runs at an average of almost 40 with five centuries in 46 ODI games in India. Ponting also smashed a blistering 76 off 53 balls in his lone T20I outing in India in 2007.
Overall, Ponting finished with almost 2,500 runs at an average of 35.34, including six centuries, across formats in India.