India have stood up to bullying
The Nottingham Test has been played against a backdrop of sledging and other less-than-impressive behaviour from both sides
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
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The Nottingham Test has been played against a backdrop of sledging and other less-than-impressive behaviour from both sides. England’s rather purile use of jelly beans to try to get under Zaheer Khan’s skin was the most reported example, but that’s the tip of the iceburg. In The Daily Telegraph, Simon Briggs says both teams are to blame.
India used to be a deferential sort of team, and a soft touch on foreign soil. But that was before the arrival of Sourav Ganguly, the man with the thickest skin in cricket. He turned them into a more streetwise, self-confident crew, and in this series they have stood up to England's bullying tactics and then replied in kind.
The jelly bean incident is in danger of distracting attention from the real issue - the gracelessness of both sides' conduct. A little edge is a good thing in sport: it shows everyone is committed to the fray. But when sledging becomes systematic, and bowlers insist on finishing each follow-through with a piercing stare, the whole process is subject to the law of diminishing returns. It just gives an impression of pettiness and angst, and that is not going to attract any extra converts to what should be a beautiful game.
In The Guardian Lawrence Booth slams Sreesanth’s behaviour – which cost him 50% of his match fee when he shoulder barged Michael Vaughan – and the beamer to Kevin Pietersen.
It was equally possible to apply a less-than-charitable interpretation of the huge no-ball delivered by Sreesanth as he went around the wicket to Collingwood late in the day. To overstep by at least two feet could suggest malicious intent. "It felt like quite a quick ball, that one," Collingwood said. "I know which one you meant." Did he think Sreesanth meant it? "I'm not too sure. You'd have to ask him."
Chris Foy in The Daily Mail is less restained about Sreesanth.
There is an air of madness around the young seamer. He is evidently a few sandwiches short of the full picnic, as was illustrated by his impromptu, mid-pitch break-dance after hitting South Africa’s Andre Nel for a six. But the malice in him appears slightly forced — all part of the act. When Vaughan reached his century, Sreesanth applauded enthusiastically.
But he adds that England’s antics – and they have been at the forefront of the sledging, with verbose wicketkeeper Matt Prior leading the charge – have done them no good.
The aggression with which England approached this match has been a consistent policy all season, ever since Vaughan returned to the helm. It is one that earned them plaudits when they won the Ashes two summers ago but which many observers thought was lacking when they succumbed so meekly in Australia last winter. The question is: have they now gone too far?
Martin Williamson is executive editor of ESPNcricinfo and managing editor of ESPN Digital Media in Europe, the Middle East and Africa