The "silly points"

A blog by ©hinaman:

`Sledging Crackdown Will Make Game Boring`

As on Cricket365: 24 March 2008

Australia pace bowler Stuart Clark has opined that a proposed crackdown on sledging could make Test matches “very boring”. With the International Cricket Council reportedly announcing a “zero tolerance” policy on the practice, Clark said sledging had been a part of the game for so long any crackdown would be difficult to police.

“What is a sledge and what’s not a sledge is my big question there!!!.”

- you tell us Mr Clark. If you do not know it yourself, how can you defend it?

“How are we going to remove something that has been so much part of the game?”

- simple, Mr Clark, by behaving like adults and not school kids. Besides it has been part of the Australian way, certainly not global. It may be something you cannot do without, but there may be others who finds it unpleasant and offensive. Every situation in life has written rules and regulations and also unwritten etiquette. If you are unable to follow, then do not be in it.

“…monitoring interaction between players would be near impossible. It’s going to be a hard one to police …”

- precisely Mr Clark, which is why it should be a “all or none law”. What is acceptable to you may be deeply offensive and hurtful to another. Do not cry mummy when someone gives you back as good as you give out. Either accept everything, racial, political and personal or play without resorting to any form of abuse.

“… it’s going to be very boring for six hours if you can’t talk to one another and can’t do anything like that,”

- then stay at home Mr Clark, and indulge in everything like that, there is no compulsion on you to play Test cricket.

“…removing of sledging completely from the game of cricket… I think it’s going to be detrimental to the game.”

- wrong again Mr Clark, it has already been detrimental to the game, so grow up and play the grown ups game.”

It is an over-reaction if Clark believes no one will be able to say anything, there is lot in life that can be talked about than WUMming on the cricket field. For that is the sole purpose of sledging, to wind up the batsman or perhaps the bowler into making mistakes.

It is very much possible to play 30 hours and have a friendly banter.

There is too much of emphasis on ‘racial’ aspects of sledging, no one comments on the personal abuse. For being able to make it a racial issue will get a desired outcome, whilst a personal abuse is brushed off as ‘acceptable’ sledging. That in my mind is unacceptable. I personally will not accept any derogatory term in reference to myself, my parents or my family.

It has to be all or none. by my reckoning, to call me a bastard is no less offensive than calling Symonds a monkey. Clark says without sledging test match will be boring. A crowd somewhere in India will say, watching cricket without making monkey chants is boring.
Both have the same rights to freedom of expression.

The game has reached a stage where EVERY player has to agree that a limit has been reached and they have to show a gesture to try and clean their act. And not have top players making such comments.

Or we will certainly have Sydney repeated over and over again.