'Tuff' love and Ashes gags
Richard Hinds, the Sydney Morning Herald columnist, analyses the Australian sense-of-humour failure caused by Phil Tufnell’s Ashes digs.
The Surfer
25-Feb-2013
Richard Hinds, the Sydney Morning Herald columnist, analyses the Australian sense-of-humour failure caused by Phil Tufnell’s Ashes digs.
Forget that Tufnell's rave was well scripted, funny and delivered with a devilish glint in the eye. When a to-and-from dares to remind our boys that the year's real cricket highlight came at their expense, suddenly they start to take themselves very seriously. Then we see the humourless side of Australian cricket. The side that says winners are grinners. And if you beat us? Just shut the hell up. We get to see Ricky Ponting make pointed reference to Tufnell's remarks as he accepts the Allan Border Medal, warning the comments would be motivation for the next Ashes series.
Sadly, the reaction to his comedy instead said more about the nation we're becoming: triumphant in victory, precious, thin-skinned and defensive in defeat. One radio news bulletin described the light-hearted routine as a "spiteful send-up". Talkback callers lamented how such un-Australian sentiments could be uttered on this sacred night of nights.
Ponting’s take on the events in The Australian is here.