BCCI has ICC on its knees

The cricket world and sports world in general will heave a sigh of relief, now that the controversies have been sorted out and the Test series between the two warring countries Australia and India would continue.

In this whole episode it was the Board of Control for Cricket in India that emerged victorious by having the ICC on its knees.

Well done the BCCI.

Unfortunately incidents that have no place in sport reared its ugly head during the Second Test in Sydney and was blown out of proportion and at one time with both teams trading allegations, it looked as though the series would be called off.

Had that happened, not only the game, but the excellent relations that was existing between the two countries would have been in jeopardy and could have caused irreparable damage and a split between the black and the white playing countries.

But thanks to the give and take policies of both countries and with the International Cricket Council pocketing pride, the series was salvaged, but the scars would remain.

The fire was lit when Harbhajan allegedly called Andrew Symonds a ‘monkey’ during a verbal exchange on the field. Fuel was added to the fire by umpires Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson by their ordinary umpiring.

In India, cricket is a religion. And the outpouring of support for the Indian cricketers and the burning of effigies of Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson said it all.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India are with off spinner Harbhajan and denies that he ever called Symonds ‘monkey’. Also they demand that Steve Bucknor not be stood for the Perth Test.

With the tour between the devil and the deep sea, either the BCCI, Cricket Australia or the International Cricket Council had to play the master stroke if the tour was to be salvaged.

At the outset the ICC stood its ground and said that there was no way that Bucknor would be removed. They also agreed with the decision of match referee Mike Procter to ban Harbhajan for Three Tests.

But finally it is apparent that the ICC came down from their Ivory Towers pocketed their pride and acceded and conceded victory to India by dumping Bucknor and agreeing to appoint a Code of Conduct Commissioner to adjudicate on India’s appeal against Harbhajan’s ban.

It means that Harbhajan would be eligible to play in the remaining Two Tests in Perth and Adelaide till the commissioner who the ICC has still to name has held the inquiry. Isn’t the game the thing ICC?

In addition the ICC has also decided to fly in Ranjan Madugalle, the chief match referee for the third Test in Perth to ‘help the two captains Ricky Pointing and Anil Kumble in re-establishing an atmosphere of goodwill and mutual respect between the two teams’.

Madugalle the former Sri Lankan captain and elegant right hand batsman apparently will be the panacea for the cricketing ills that exists between the two teams.

One hopes that the two teams would not be muzzled. A bit of verbals and banter is a must for the good of the game and we hope it would not be killed and played deaf and dumb style.

However it is the Australian team that stands accused of not playing the game in the spirit, with critics baying for the sacking of captain Ricky Ponting.

The Aussies who have continued to dominate the cricket world with their arrogant style of play, have been the team that all countries would love to hate and to beat.

They play hard, sledge hard and go for the jagular of the opponent from the first ball. These attributes have made them win consistently and be the envy of all other teams. After all in today’s context isn’t winning the only thing?

The Aussies have been accused of being ‘boorish’ and ‘arrogant’ for taunting the Indians, pressurising the umpires and indulging in ungracious victory celebrations.

But the Australian team to a man backs skipper Ponting and that shows that they play as a team which has brought them success over the years.

If the Aussies, who have now equalled Steve Waugh’s record of 16 straight wins, defeat the Indians in Perth in the next Test, then they would chalk up a record and wouldn’t Ponting be hailed as the best captain that the baggy green caps ever had.

Today the excellent virtues that sport held has been knocked into a cocked hat with mind boggling amounts of money to be won. No player or team would want to lose.

So the ugly side of the sport must show.

I happened to run into a former umpire Milroy Mendis and while talking of the umpiring decisions by Bucknor and Benson that went to create mayhem at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Mendis said that mistakes by umpires are accepted, but cheating certainly not.

Mendis knew what he was talking because he has the experience of standing in the middle. He also said that all will rush to criticise umpires, but not many would want to do that thankless job. How true.