Brad Haddin says Australia will continue to play tough cricket

Hobart, Jan 21: The criticism they are facing notwithstanding, Australia's wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin said his team is quite comfortable playing a hard-nosed brand of cricket and would not be affected by the furore caused by David Warner's latest code-of-conduct offence.

Tri-series schedule

Warner was fined 50 per cent of his match fee after a verbal clash with Indian batsman Rohit Sharma in their last One-day International at the MCG. It was the Aussie opener's second offence for the season and drew a stern warning from Cricket Australia chief James Sutherland, who told him to "stop looking for trouble".

"We have a clear message of where it's all at," Haddin said here ahead of Friday's tri-series game against England.

"We know the brand of cricket we want to play and Davey's no different to all of us. We're out there to compete. The umpires are there to do their job and they'll adjudicate on anything they see that's unfit and not in the spirit of the game," Haddin told 'Daily Telegraph'.

Haddin insisted that the Aussies would continue to play the way they have always played the game. "Every Australian team I've played in respects the game of cricket and respects the opposition. We're pretty comfortable with the way we're playing," said Haddin.

Australia coach Darren Lehmann had said earlier this week that his boys would continue to play aggressive cricket. "If the ICC decides it's not in the spirit of the game or we cross the line then they'll come down on us," Lehmann had said. "We're always going to teeter pretty close to it. That's the way we play."

PTI