That's just not cricket!

What is going on with England and Pakistan?!?!?!?   

Accusations of ball tampering?!?!?  Decisions about forfeits?!?!?!? 

That's just not cricket!

I guess they just don't want to play anymore knowing that they have already lost the test series.

Bring Back Wasim and Waqar!

I bet these old chaps are still better than the young guns of today.

They probably are!!

However, have just discovered there is an Australian umpire causing all the furore... GREEEEAT.   

And he isn't known for his wonderful umpiring... more for his controversial decisions - remember the Pakistani player who got pulled up for his bowling action?  Same umpire!  Oh dear....

I've never liked this game "cricket" but suddenly I've taken some interest into the game.

Poirottttttttttttttttttttttttt whats happening with the gentleman sport its just not the same.

Miaki

Poirottttttttttttttttttttttttt whats happening with the gentleman sport its just not the same.

Gentleman sport? That was just a canard spread by the English, so that they could curl their upper lips and say "That's scarcely cricket, old boy" (say with a suitable, plummy accent!) whenever they wanted to put anyone down!!!!!

And, it went rapidly downhill, since we admitted the aussies to the sport .....

Heh

 

NYARK!!!

Poirot

Ha.  Ha.  (Slow clap) ... you're just jealous that some other colonial outpost threatens your cricketing glory!

I bet you didn't know that the first Australian cricket team to tour England consisted of Aborigines?  They set the standard for the rest of the teams to follow!

http://www.atmitchell.com/journeys/social/cricket/first/firstTour.cfm

Sajid, what's going on in Pakistan?  The media here seems to have turned the coverage from whether the ball was tampered with or not, to whether the team should have stayed in the dressing room or not!  Seems quite unfair really... as Ricky Ponting said today - it didn't seem like it was entirely the captains choice... he continued play until the break.

Heh heh ..... It looks like the aussies are not as hardened and thick skinned as they would have us believe ...... Did I tell you about the time that Stevie baby complained of being kept waiting by Ganguly for the toss? 

Mind you, Ganguly did have a knack for getting under the opposing captain's skin!

No, I did not know that the original team was composed entirely of aboriginals .... thank you for that factoid and increasing my knowledge of cricket trivia.

But, it HAS been all downhill since then, right?

 

Sajid, what's going on in Pakistan?  The media here seems to have turned the coverage from whether the ball was tampered with or not, to whether the team should have stayed in the dressing room or not!  Seems quite unfair really... as Ricky Ponting said today - it didn't seem like it was entirely the captains choice... he continued play until the break.

Inzi shared his story in the news by saying that he was consulting with the coach and the rest of the boys when the Umpire re-entered the field. Knowing this the quickly told the boys to go out to play but when they reached the field the umpire had lost his cool and came back and issued a decision that Pakistan forfeited the game. The whole team got a big shock after this.

As far as the ball tampering issue goes, that ball had taken pretty much beating (55-56 overs) and how can one tell if it was tampered as it would have countless scratches.

The bottom line is that Inzi says that if he doesn't play the ODI series due ban, then the entire team will also not play as a protest.

   

Miaki I agree with you there 

I'm inclined to agree with you Sajid, after 56 overs how could you tell?  But the cricketing community seems to be sticking by Darrel Hair - I guess they have to ... he's an umpire!!! I hope Inzi doesn't get a ban.

An interesting article today .... this is not the first time that Bob Woolmer (as coach) has been pulled up for ball tampering!

http://www.indianexpress.com/story/11371.html
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/11371.html

Past sins catching up with Woolmer, eh?

Miaki, Smurfette, you make me wonder about the truth of the "Australian sports loving public" image in mainstream media ......

 

The latest revelations don't exactly do Darell Hairs credibility any favour either do they? I remember commenting to my father that "Hair probably needed another bookdeal to tide him over" when the forfeit first occured. It now comes to light that he has asked for a cool $500,000 USD to go away quietly and not bully other nations teams. His treatment of Muralitheran {A tuly outstanding cricketer and all round gentleman} was a disgrace and made me all too ashamedly aware of my nations chequered cricketing history regarding issues of race and fair play. 

When England won the Ashes last year with phenomenal late reverse swing bowling it was put down to "Great skill." when the Pakistanis do the same thing they are docked five runs and charged with ball tampering.  Crickets great racial divide shows no sign of closing and my sympathy and understanding goes out to those countries that are seriously thinking of breaking away and forming their own league.....leaving the Australian and English teams along with a few other token nations to play with themselves...which some might suggest is pretty much what they do best anyway. 

Good on Inzimam for taking a stand and refusing to be bullied by an 18 stone umpire with a keen nose for controversy and a dubious track record on upholding "The spirit of the game"

Definitions of cricket a game played with a ball and bat by two teams of 11 players; teams take turns trying to score runs.

And they call that a sport?     

Miaki