Published: May 04, 2011, 12:13 PM (IST)
Edited: Mar 21, 2014, 07:25 PM (IST)
By Suneer Chowdhary
Before the start of each Indian Premier League (IPL) season, the captains are required to sign MCC’s Spirit of Cricket code to ensure that the teams play not only within the laws that govern the game but also the ethos that had once christened the game as a gentlemen’s sport.
But do the captains and teams abide by the Spirit of Cricket? Hell, it would be interesting to understand whether some of them have even read the manual.
This piece enumerates some of the incidents in the past week of the IPL that have clearly stretched the aforesaid manual to its limit, on occasions even bordering on the realms of the ridiculous.
Harbhajan deliberate short run
Mumbai Indians were in trouble against the Rajasthan Royals. Harbhajan Singh was Mumbai’s last hope of garnering a few more runs. With three balls to go, it was important Harbhajan got as much of the strike as possible. A slog to the leg-side would have brought him a run and lose strike. Instead, he decided to deliberately complete 75% of the first run before rushing back for the second! The umpire called one run short but, most importantly, Harbhajan got what he wanted – retain the strike!
Two points to ponder here. One, according to the laws of the game, a deliberate short-run should immediately result in the umpire calling it a dead ball and no runs should be awarded. Clearly, the umpire either thought that it was unintentional or he did not know the rule – more likely the latter, because Harbhajan’s act left nobody in doubt about his motive.
Secondly, Harbhajan contravened the spirit of the game. His win-at-any-cost mentality is not in the right spirit of the game.
Gambhir rests
This happened in the game between Kolkata and Punjab at the Eden Gardens.
One has seen players asking for substitutes for a quick rest or to provide the team the advantage of fresh pair of legs – bowlers after a protracted spell and batsmen after a long innings. But it’s rare to see a captain taking such a break. But it happened in Kolkata’s game against Punjab when Knight Riders’ captain Gautam Gambhir chose to go back into the dugout and be with bowling coach Wasim Akram.
The rules stipulate that substitutes can be taken only in case of injuries and as has been the case in the past, but the rule has been repeatedly abused. One isn’t sure whether Gambhir’s decision to get back to the pavilion was to deliberately have a chat with the coach or otherwise, but clearly the ICC needs to tighten the law with regard to the use of substitutes.
Jayawardene frets
This one is funny actually. Vinay Kumar attempts a slower ball that goes horribly wrong. It comes out much slower than expected and bounces twice before getting to the batsman, Yogesh Nagar, who smashes it away to the fence. An upset Jayawardene complains to the batsman for not being sporting enough to let the ball go!
Commentator Harsha Bhogle hit the nail on the head, “Did Jayawardene expect the batman to catch the ball and give it back to the bowler?!”
Mumbai Indians’ complaint
Technically, the Mumbai Indians were well within their rights to lodge an official complaint against the pitch at Sawai Man Singh Stadium – 94 in 20 overs is hardly a score one would expect from a T20 game. And yet, one felt that it was a case of sour grapes. It was a pitch that barely changed complexion over the period of the game and to complain against the nature of the track was akin to showing disrespect to the opponents, who had comfortably chased the target on the same pitch.
Why abuse?
And if my lip-reading abilities are not bad, then this business of fielders using abusive words – more often directed at the victim – in their on-field moments of celebrations is another thing that needs to be tempered. It certainly contravenes the spirit in which the game is played. The players are role models and they should realise the damage they do with such acts as there are millions of impressionable minds watching them.
(Suneer is a Mumbai-based cricket writer and can be contacted at suneerchowdhary@gmail.com and Tweets here @suneerchowdhary)
