It’s high time players stopped abusing the spirit of the game

At a grand event, organised by Bishan Singh Bedi, that paid rich tributes to Tiger Pataudi, one central theme stood out: cricket, its ethics and fair-play.
Former cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi. | PTI File Photo
Former cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi. | PTI File Photo

At a grand event filled with former cricket stalwarts and film stars, organised by Bishan Singh Bedi, that paid rich tributes to Tiger Pataudi, one central theme stood out: cricket, its ethics and fair-play.

Bedi and almost all speakers emphasised that the core of cricket was its stress on good behaviour, which the Nawab of Pataudi was an embodiment of. Even the master of ceremonies was cautious of this code-of-ethics theme, and whenever he crossed the line with his witty, raunchy one-liners, he looked in Bedi’s direction and apologised.

Bedi, the old school cricketer that he is, swears by “mythical” traditions spread by the imperialist British aristocracy to make the world believe how steeped they were in moral values.While no one questions the value of proper conduct in sport, it may seem out of sync with modern times, where aggression and anger laced with sledging are seen as strong motivators for eliciting good performance from players. India’s own Virat Kohli is seen as a super example of these “virtues”, ones that have propelled him to the top of the world’s batting charts.

When once in a while these “motivating” props go out of control, especially when a player resorts to excessive abuse, the world wakes up to its ugly side and the administrators are forced to penalise the guilty.The Australians have over the years mastered these verbal volleys, which during the period when Ricky Ponting was captaining them, had crossed all limits. It is a tradition that no one can be proud of, and whenever an incident like the latest one involving David Warner occurs, it leaves everyone embarrassed.

His altercation with South African Quinton de Kock could ha­ve resulted in a physical joust th­at could have matched the worst kind of violence that football fields witness. No wonder cricket is even mulling the introduction of red cards to discipline rowdy elements, a move that leaves traditionalists like Bedi lamenting for the “old” values of the game.

The image that floats in the mind whenever violent behaviour on the field surfaces is of a Duleep Trophy game of the nineties; one with Rashid Patel running after Raman Lamba with a stump in his hand, with the intention of thrashing the latter. It is one of the most ugly scars on Indian cricket; one that the distance of years may have healed but should never be forgotten.

The germs of violent behaviour have a fertile ground in letting players believe that anger is a fuel for good performance. The reason why Steve Waugh’s and Ponting’s Australians were invincible on the field of play was their talent and not ugly behaviour, as many would like to believe. The West Indians of the eighties proved that to win and decimate opponents, skill alone mattered, not tantrums and abuses.

We live in strange times where discipline and hard work are as much stressed upon as being competitive and forging ahead, even if one has to adopt means that are not always desirable. Violence will always lurk somewhere in the background when success becomes the ultimate barometer of worth, regardless of the means adopted.

Players are often told to not curtail their anger if it helps them perform better. When Kohli scores a century and celebrates it by gesticulating in anger, or hurls abuses at his opponents after getting them out, we are told to let him be, as these are his inspirational tools.That may be so, but human behaviour is an unpredictable beast and when encouragement comes from the ecosystem we live in, why should we be surprised if someone explodes and crosses that sacrosanct line that no one would want breached?

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