‘Beyond cricket, kabaddi and kho kho are also popular in Australia’: Phillip Green

Australian High Commissioner Phillip Green

If India's cricket fans expect Australia to be vulnerable in next year's Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) after Pat Cummins & Co's shock defeat to Bangladesh in the first Test at Darwin, they're mistaken, according to Australian High Commissioner Phillip Green. "We learn when we win, but we learn a bit more when we lose. Pat Cummins is an extraordinary leader, so India should not be particularly comforted [by Australia's defeat to Bangladesh] because, while we're good at all times, we're even better with our backs against the wall," Green told mid-day during an exclusive interaction at the Australian Consulate-General office in Bandra-Kurla Complex recently.

Green is in the city to promote the India-Australia Roadmap for Sports Collaboration, titled ‘G'Day, Namaste,' which will kick off with a Big Bash League match between Perth Scorchers and Melbourne Renegades in Chennai this December. "India and Australia share a great cricket connection. Hats off to Cricket Australia for coming up with this idea and the Indian authorities for agreeing. Sport is the newest field of bilateral engagement," Green said, adding that Australia's Trade team will be hosting a Sports Industry Summit in Mumbai in December to promote collaboration between Indian and Australian companies in sports equipment manufacturing, and sports businesses.

Australia is also keen to share its expertise in hosting major sporting events as India looks to stage the 2032 Commonwealth Games and potentially, the Olympics.

"Australia have hosted five Commonwealth Games, and Brisbane 2032 will be our third Olympics. So, we have a range of expertise in tech and sport which we can make available to India," said Green, pointing to Australia's success in elite athlete development which is proved by the fact that despite a population of just 26 million, Australia finished fourth in the medals tally at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Interestingly, kabaddi and kho-kho are also part of this collaboration thanks to the near-one million Indians in Australia. "Kabaddi and kho-kho are very popular; there's a serious kabaddi league in Australia. A kabaddi player and an Aussie Rules footballer need similar physical qualities, so there's some real adjacency there which can be harnessed. We did a kabaddi exhibition game at the MCG when the Prime Ministers of both nations met earlier this year. Also, our men's and women's teams were part of the Kho Kho World Cup in Delhi last year," concluded Green.