Played in the correct spirit

Onto Trinidad for the second test match in the Caribbean. The Sri Lankans basking in their first victory in the island are full of confidence. The only drawback being the lack of any cricket in Tobago, for the visiting team. The final weekend of the domestic four day tournament, “Carib Cup”, was played and inadequate first class players prompted the WICB to request a cancellation of the game. It could only be described as a lack of foresight! They also sighted inability to arrange flights for the players to reach the venue. Again lack of foresight!

The players have had a long lay off. In Tobago, the ground they were to play the three day game did not have a good enough centre pitch to practice on. The outfield had been too rough to even jog on, so for safety reasons it was decided to keep off. Not the best form of preparation, but time off will give those who had a tough first test more time to recover. For those who have not played, it is time lost and experience of some sort in these different conditions.

There is a definite lack of urgency and focus to move on with the rest of the cricket world, here in the West Indies. The former players identify as a major shortcoming. Cricket in schools are dying if not dead. The club structure is not developed sufficently and not strong enough to give junior players a sufficient grounding. Meanwhile the Sri Lankan players arrived in Trinidad and found practice facilities not up to the mark for a test venue. They got by doing as much as they possibly could. Talking to Kumar Sangakkara later, his reaction was, “You can’t get angry with these guys they are such nice people!”

Being nice guys is fine, but obviously the lackadaisical approach is affecting West Indian cricket. They are unable to beat any of the major playing nations at the moment. There are only a handful of players who challenge to be in the list of good international players. The others regrettably make up the numbers.

It could be the lack of team success and their nature in general, perhaps a combination of both that has made them into a group of less hostile international cricketers. The Sri Lankans too unless really provoked get about minding their business and concentrating on the game.

A sharp contrast from the confrontations between the Indians and Australians. Both teams did not give in; higher authorities had to intervene. The feud between these two teams erupted many years ago when Sourav Ganguly and Steve Waugh were the captains. The animosity created then has continued. Often its two or three players who get involved directly in the confrontations. There will be another two or three who will stir the pot. The rest will keep mum and only be seen and not heard. The issue though will be splashed all over the media and will become an affair. Other issues such as umpiring decisions get dragged into the melee. Then there will be a lot of mud slinging. The governing bodies may lend a helping hand, should they need to curry favour with a particular side. Finally when you look back it has been a small incident that has sparked it all off.

Sportsmen and women in all walks of life fall into aggressive and non aggressive or volatile and non volatile creatures. Usually those who select to be part of contact sport, be it team or individual, tend to have a tough and aggressive outlook, both mentally and physically and tend to collide with their opponents. Most of these sports have guidelines and law to keep players under control. Open confrontations with referees and umpires are now a thing of the past, as the repercussions are severe.

Cricket was a sport played at a leisurely pace until the limited over game arrived. The game was described as, “played by gentlemen and witnessed by gentlemen!” with changes to society happening rapidly since the nineteen sixties and money being associated with sport the outlook began to change.

It was the Australians of the early nineteen seventies who introduced consistent aggressiveness into cricket and the word “sledging” became a commonly used term. Eventually as it spread around the world it took a totally different perspective. It had to be brought under control and had to start at the top. Match referees penalizing the players is now in progress and that has helped.

The captains play a major part in a team’s conduct on the field. Mahela Jayawardena has been the example of playing fair upto the maximum he can stretch himself. He has had brilliant players who could perform, play hard, without being outwardly aggressive. Sanath Jayasuriya, Marvan Atapattu, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Kumar Sangakkara, fall into that category and the younger players who have made the team have followed their example.

It was a pleasure to witness five days of absorbing test cricket when the Sri Lankans and West Indians played the game in the correct spirit.