The light-handed Mr Lindsay
© CricInfo The course of the English tour of India has seen many in the press shower plaudits on Nasser Hussain's captaincy, and it must be admitted that they were, for the most part, deserved
Samanth Subramanian
04-Feb-2002
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© CricInfo |
As a column writer on the subject, I personally could not have hoped for
a more fitting climax to what has been a notably ugly touring spectacle.
With five runs to defend and a series to square, Andrew Flintoff castled
Javagal Srinath and then, in an act of such startling immediacy that it
must have been premeditated, proceeded to rip off his shirt and careen
about the ground in a wilful imitation of English on-field football
brashness.
Aside from springing a few more yards of lily-white flab on unsuspecting
Mumbaikars than they bargained for, Flintoff's action perfectly capped
off a forgettable performance by the England team - not in terms of
results, for we shall not inaccurately grudge them that, but in terms of
being ambassadors for their country and the sport of cricket.
Reliable recyclers of hoary cliches, ever since Cronje-gate, have not
missed many opportunities to tell us that cricket has ceased to be a
gentleman's game. Maybe, then, that je-ne-sais-quoi spirit is no longer
present. But the laws still are, and the ICC Code of Conduct's rule
about "bringing the game of cricket into disrepute" can still be invoked
if the spirit of the game fails to measure up.
Clauses C1 and C2, ironically enough, were in recent memory most notably
applied against the Indians in the second Test in South Africa. The
match referee on that occasion - Mike Denness - was accused of being
heavy-handed, and Denis Lindsay, his replacement for the next game - the
unofficial "Test" - could only have been chosen for a more marked
reputation for leniency.
Lindsay proved that in full during this one-day series; indeed, if he
were any more light-handed, he could carve out a lucrative career as a
pick-pocket. As the commentators stated at the end of the last one-day
international, not one player was hauled up for any offence during the
six-match series.
This is not to say that there were no breaches of Rule C2. The
notoriously long memories of the Indian cricket fan will recall, years
hence, Flintoff and other bowlers hurling epithets after dismissals,
Hussain jumping up and down, screaming abuse, as Harbhajan edged a
boundary between wicket-keeper and first slip in those crucial final
stages of the sixth match, wanton bodily obstruction of sprinting
batsmen by some of the quicker bowlers - and of course, Flintoff's Half
(thank heavens for small mercies) Monty.
One can only infer, considering that each of those offences was filmed
and replayed many times over, that Lindsay is a less conscientious user
of videotape than Denness. His complete ignorance of these incidents was
abetted by the umpires, 11 of the 12 having officiated in less than 11
one-dayers and not about to nip their burgeoning careers in the bud by
lodging complaints against a touring side.
Perhaps the feisty attitude did help the English perform better, for
they fought back admirably to square the one-day series. But they would
do well to remember that the world's best cricketer is also in
contention to be the world's foremost gentleman. It was a relief beyond
words to hear, as the culmination of a very un-pretty series, the polite
and measured tones of Sachin Tendulkar as he collected his mammoth Man
of the Series award. With his shirt on.