No cricket in Eden, please (23 February 1999)

23 February 1999

No cricket in Eden, please

Syed Mahbub Murshed

Once again, the cricket test in Eden has proved that international cricket is unplayable in Calcutta. On two consecutive days, the spectators in the India-Pakistan test match created disturbances, hurled abuses, threw bottles and made the game almost unplayable just because India was about to be defeated its arch opponent, Pakistan. Surprisingly, even the Calcutta newspapers played a very unhelpful role, and in the view of many, incited the uninformed crowd, imbued with unwholesome chauvinistic nationalism.

Sachin Tendulkar was declared out by the umpire and rightly so. We all saw on the TV that running Sachin dashed against fielder Shoaib Akhter, who was, with his back towards the approaching runner, poised at an appropriate place to hold the ball. It was the duty of the runner to see that he did not hit any fielder in position, and the umpire judged that Akhter had no malafide intention. Why should the opponent suffer for Sachin's miscalculation or over sight? But what the crowd did or the sort of violent anger they displayed was in un-cricket like utter distaste. The unruly crowd had to be flushed out of the stadium to ensure that the game could be played. And the Pakistanis, with ten balls, finished the Indians off.

As a matter of fact, the Pakistanis should be given kudos for the way they played to the end under physical threat. That they at all came to India in spite of the communal approach taken by a section of Indians (hopefully small), and the threats given by Shiv Sena, an ally of the ruling BJP, is commendable. It helped to soften the tense political climate.

The coverage by Calcutta Press was incredible. Under the caption "Akram loses India but may win the Test," the Daily Telegraph suggested that Wasim Akram should have requested Sachin to play on and that would have saved the situation. Do the rules of cricket or for that matter, of any game, permit that? It is the umpire who would judge as to who should continue to play and who is out, and not the captain of the opposing team. What a ridiculous suggestion!

Recognising that Akhter had no way of seeing the approaching batsman, another correspondent "wisely" commented that fielders should never stand in such positions. It seems that it was an act of generosity on the part of the Press not to have suggested that Akhter, Saqlain and Akram should not have bowled so well, and Anwar Sayeed should not have remained invincible throughout an innings.

Blinded by communalistic fervour, some newspapers even criticised Azharuddin's appearing on a commercial display along with Wasim Akram with a smiling face. What a low mentality!

However, the redeeming feature of the Pakistani tour is that the government succeeded in providing adequate security to the players, the crowds in Chennai cheered the winning Pakistani side, and the law-enforcing authorities forced out the unruly spectators who had thronged the Eden Stadium. Perhaps such a shameful thing never occurred before. What happened in Calcutta perhaps constitutes the darkest episode in the history of cricket.

One cannot forget that Sir Garry Sobers ran for his life from Eden in 1967; on March 13, 1996, the same Calcutta crowd unashamedly disrupted the World Cup semifinal between Sri Lanka and India, when India faced a sure defeat. Even the crowd abused Sunil Gavasker and his wife, for what they thought, not too - Indian a conduct.

Now that, there is a hope of good-will and amity being established in the subcontinent at the wake of Vajpayee-Sharif meeting, let cricket also play its contributing role. The proper response to what happened should be not to stage any international cricket in Calcutta for a few years till the crowd learns how to behave.

Source :: The Bangladesh Daily Star (https://www.dailystarnews.com)