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OK to taunt Murali says MacGill

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
With no C_C these days Murali threads seem to be descending into accusations of racism less than ever...
 

Athlai

Not Terrible
With no C_C these days Murali threads seem to be descending into accusations of racism less than ever...
Racism! tbh

Well MacGill seems like a bit of an idiot after saying that doesn't he? He should know better as a professional cricketer.

The whole Murali being "soft" issue can mainly be explained due to this isn't just light hearted taunting. People are questioning his whole legacy and even his right to play the game. Accusations of cheating are more than just saying "he can't catch", very different from the kind of taunting Chris Martin gets when he bats (teeheehee). I can understand why Murali is so bothered by it and if he left the tour due to taunting I'd think no less of him. Sometimes people just take it to far.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
It's fairly obvious I thought: to not give his taunters the satisfaction. As it is he's shown he can be got at. Will that make them more or less likely to have another go?
and if just accepts it mutely(or ignores it) and tries to get on with it, will that make them more or less likely to have another go? first of all these people are certainly not true cricket fans, so as far as such people are concerned, i would think they would just raise the degree of abuse to get some attention(which is why they are doing it in the first place), at what point does it become unacceptable in your opinion?

the stupidest thing i found about mcgill's statements, that spectators don't owe the sportsmen anything...they most certainly do, in return for the players playing their best in a professional and disciplined manner, the least the spectators can do is observe some basic decency while taking in the game and the atmosphere....no one is forcing them to cheer for someone they don't like but sustained abuse is despicable and should not be tolerated....
 

FaaipDeOiad

Hall of Fame Member
Doesn't seem that bad to me, and as a rule I actually agree with MacGill. Obviously certain things are beyond the pale, but I've got no problem with people being dicks and yelling "no ball" if that's what they want to do. Sportsmen all over the world have to deal with that sort of thing from crowds, it's just that few are as controversial or as significant as Murali is, so he cops more.

The same, incidentally, applies to Gillespie being taunted by the crowd during the 2005 Ashes and so on. Not to racial abuse, threats of physical violence and so on, though.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
Doesn't seem that bad to me, and as a rule I actually agree with MacGill. Obviously certain things are beyond the pale, but I've got no problem with people being dicks and yelling "no ball" if that's what they want to do. Sportsmen all over the world have to deal with that sort of thing from crowds, it's just that few are as controversial or as significant as Murali is, so he cops more.

The same, incidentally, applies to Gillespie being taunted by the crowd during the 2005 Ashes and so on. Not to racial abuse, threats of physical violence and so on, though.
no offense but it's not your problem in the first place, is it?:) everyone has got their tolerance limits and for murali, it looks like it's getting taunted in a way that questions his achievements and his place in cricketing history in a country where the prime minister himself publicly called him a chucker...
 

FaaipDeOiad

Hall of Fame Member
no offense but it's not your problem in the first place, is it?:) everyone has got their tolerance limits and for murali, it looks like it's getting taunted in a way that questions his achievements and his place in cricketing history in a country where the prime minister himself publicly called him a chucker...
That's fine, and Murali doesn't have to tolerate it. He can refuse to tour Australia or he can quit cricket and become an insurance salesman. That's all up to him. The point remains though that other cricketers do have to handle nasty treatment from the crowd and most manage to do so. It might not be the same as it is with Murali, but he's not the first and not the last.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
That's fine, and Murali doesn't have to tolerate it. He can refuse to tour Australia or he can quit cricket and become an insurance salesman. That's all up to him. The point remains though that other cricketers do have to handle nasty treatment from the crowd and most manage to do so. It might not be the same as it is with Murali, but he's not the first and not the last.
although we are focussing on murali's issue in this thread, i agree that it happens to other players as well and they probably grit their teeth and bear it(although i doubt whether any of the other cases have the same degree of hateful abuse)... all i am saying is that just because it happens to players and some(or most) manage to ignore it doesn't make it right and doesn't mean that it should be tolerated...
 

Athlai

Not Terrible
That's fine, and Murali doesn't have to tolerate it. He can refuse to tour Australia or he can quit cricket and become an insurance salesman. That's all up to him. The point remains though that other cricketers do have to handle nasty treatment from the crowd and most manage to do so. It might not be the same as it is with Murali, but he's not the first and not the last.
So you condone it?
 

Johnners

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
So long as it's not racial abuse, or personl (eg. "ya mum etc.") i don't see it as that big of a problem. Lets not forget that Murali isn't the only one that's ever been taunted. As Faaip said Gillespie copped it in '05, and iirc a while back Lee was on the receiving end of the same "no ball" chant Murali receives.
 

JBMAC

State Captain
So, if Murali wants to avoid a real"bagging", all he needs to do is BOWL a ball and not CHUCK it.
 

Chubby Rain

School Boy/Girl Captain
Macgill should concentrate on his bowling.
I don't think thats possible. He needs to devote all his time to wine tasting sessions and picking out cricketing kits with full arms so his elbows stay covered when he finally gets to bowl.
 

pasag

RTDAS
Putting MacGill to the side for a second, I may hold a romantic idea of what cricket is and should be about - a gentleman's game and above other hooligan based sports and therefore I think any booing of Murali would be an absolute disgrace even more so because he is one of the greatest cricketers to have played and deserves alot of respect (in a cricketing capacity) for that. I could imagine the indignation and uproar there would be in Australia if say a Warne or any of our heroes was booed overseas, especially on reaching such a great milestone and there really shouldn't be any difference here.
 

The Sean

Cricketer Of The Year
Well said mate. I expressed a similar sentiment in the Murali Record thread, but not nearly so well. :)
 

SirBloody Idiot

Cricketer Of The Year
Its a misleading title - he's not said its 'OK' to taunt Murali; far from it. He's said that sportsmen as a rule (obviously talking about Murali) need to be less precious.

I agree when he says the crowds don't owe them anything - they are the reason they make such a good living.
 

sideshowtim

Banned
The Barmy Army have a ridiculous amount of songs taunting Australian cricketers. They must have a 50 page book about Warney, they have a lot about Punter now these days too. These songs are certainly things which taunt players. Should we disallow these? Should the Barmy Army not be able to sing such 'filth'?

Personally, I think cricketers need to man up. Not all of them actually because a large majority of them take taunts from the crowd as it's meant to be taken, a bit of a joke which symbolises the rivalry and passion that goes on in cricket. But Murali, what a god damn whinger. Why is he so special that the crowd is not allowed to taunt him? They damn well taunt every other cricketer in the world, so why should Murali be excepted?
 

Dasa

International Vice-Captain
Not OK for cricketers to voice their honest, harmless opinons say CricketWeb members.
Um...no. Are people saying you're not allowed to voice an "honest, harmless opinion"? No. But we are allowed to condemn someone for their "honest, harmless opinion", which is what has been going on in this thread.

Regarding your other points, you're making the false assumption that people are against abuse/taunts against Murali only. Most people speaking out against what Murali has to endure are against abuse/taunts no matter who has to suffer them.
I think it's incorrect to paint Murali as a whinger as well, although I'm not surprised to see such sentiment coming from yourself. He has had to endure a lot of abuse/taunts throughout his career, and has probably had to deal with more of it than any other cricketer around. Considering the abuse he has been subjected to, I think he's dealt with it quite well and it is rare for him to speak out against it. The abuse that is directed at Murali also has a much nastier tone than that which is directed at most other cricketers. Considering all this, I don't consider Murali a "whinger" at all.
 
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