Saturday was obviously a hugely disappointing result for us coming off the back of a run of such positive matches. While I don’t think we rested on our laurels, Welbeck were certainly very fired up and perhaps wanted it more than we did. They outplayed us in the first ten overs of each innings, firstly through Jake Ball’s bowling and then Martin Dobson with the bat, and they were well worth their win at the end of the day.
When your up against it in a game like that, you have to look for any positives you can take out of the match, and when we removed Martin Dobson with the score on 90, we thought we might just be able to sneak a point. Our hopes were raised further when the new batsman knocked the cover off the ball when trying to tickle it down the leg side, and Sam Ogrizovic took the catch. To the fielders disbelief the umpire said no, and we were unable to make another breakthrough.
I have no issue with the umpire giving the ball not out, after all, he can only give what he sees and hears. However, as a batsman, should you walk when you know you have hit, as this lad did? It is an age-old question of sportsmanship that goes right back in time. Some people are ‘walkers’ others are not. Some ‘walk’ when its obvious but hang about when it is subtle.
Cricket is often held up as a game of morals in which players, play in the famous ‘spirit of the game’. Indeed, the Lords Taverners and the MCC pride themselves on taking this spirit of the game message around the world as a model for sporting behaviour. Yet when we look closely, how much of cricket now really encompasses sporting behaviour?
Let us look first at a couple of examples. The recent ODI that I watched on TV at Southampton had two incidents where the third umpire was needed to decided on whether a fielder had touched the rope. On both occasions the fielder was adamant that they hadn’t, and the TV footage was at best inconclusive. Yet the decision, was four runs on both occasions, challenging the fielders honesty. This has been seen too witch catches in the field being disallowed as the TV footage makes it look like the ball bounced, when we all know that sometimes it just lands on the fingers.
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| Is the third umpire to blame for damaging the spirit of cricket? |
This challenging culture now permeates everything within our game at the top level. Yes we want to make sure the decision is correct, but does it set the right example to those playing at a grass roots level. When I grew up it was very rare for players to challenge other players on the validity of a dismissal or a piece of fielding. It was accepted that people were honest. Of course, on occasions some were not, but it was deemed that the weight of that on their conscience would be punishment enough. Nowadays it is quite common to see a batsman stand his ground, or for players to ‘try and get away with it’ due to the win at all costs culture that we have created.
I am not saying that this is wrong, or that I have not been party to such behaviour (anyone who has seen me on a coaching hockey on the touchline will know I look for every advantage possible!). I do however think it is time for the MCC to stop patronising people about the Spirit of Cricket, as at the moment, I struggle to understand what that really means.
I leave you with this… If you get a little snick on Saturday, will you walk or wait for the umpire to make a decision? I won’t judge you.
For me it depends on who you are playing, the state of the game and the spirit in which that game had been played. In a big match where you think the umpire might be undecided, I would stand. In a Sunday friendly or Forty Club match I would walk off before the umpire could even think about it. I also think you get enough bad uns to justify such an approach!
ReplyDeleteChris, I don't know how long you have been at kicc, but until the current economic downturn hit, kicc was known for three things: poaching players with the lure of milk and honey, not walking when the batsmen is apparently undecided if he hit it (cheating is too strong a term to use in this context), and the uncharitable supporters on the bench not having passports. What's your next blog going to be about? The kicc season ticket holders sponsored bike ride to skeg to raise money for nostalgia?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous
ReplyDeleteIt's a rare thing to find a batsmen who walks in the first place and whilst I don't like it, it has unfortunately become a feature of the game at all clubs I've seen over my years of watching NPL cricket. That said if you are going to make spurious claims about my club have the decency to admit who you are and present the evidence to back up what you have written instead of hiding behind internet anonymity.