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Sledging is an art I feel.

Bapu Rao Swami

U19 12th Man
We all heard what Sunny Gavaskar had to say, and many including me agree with him. Gavaskar was very fair in his lecture citing Australia for being the biggest sledgers in the game but NOT the only sledgers.

Sledging has different meanings in different cricketing nations, in Pakistan its origins are linked to the streets like Lahori street smartness by Akram, in India its regarded as against the rules and morals of the game, in England I reckon its more of hear it from one ear and throw from the other, in South Africa its practised only when the going gets tough eg. the F word sighed by Kallis so very often whne things don't go his way, in Australia I hear its a natural thing(no pun intended) maybe its the Aussie way, in West Indies its regarded as it is in England, in Lanka its regarded as racism.

My take on Sledging...

Take Indian captain Sourav Ganguly who had a big dummy spit to Aussie counterpart Ricky Ponting during the second ODI final of the VB series, when the India were in the process of being flogged by 208, at the SCG.

Sledging has been outlawed by both the ICC and Cricket Australia, but both organisations had missed the point.

Ganguly was batting at the time, when he complained about Aussie paceman Brad Williams as the alleged culprit – and it’s not the first time this hot-headed Aussie has teed off, and he had only been in the big-time for “five minutes.”

There’s a big difference between sledging – and being a loud-mouth who thinks he’s better than he really is, trying to prove he’s “big and tough” in the toughest arena cricket can offer.

Tyro Indian paceman Irfan Pathan was even worse, he had been in the big-time for just “two minutes.” Trying to humiliate Damien Marytn on his dismissal by clapping his hands in the Aussie’s face, and just smirking at him from close range, earned this “wannabe” an official reprimand from referee Clive Lloyd, for bringing the game into disrepute.

That’s where the ICC had missed the point, Williams and Pathan deserve to come under the “behave” category, they were over the top, but shrewd sledging has been part of sport since the dim, dark ages.

Two stand out examples;

Aussie keeper Ian Healy got right up Sri Lankan skipper Arjuna Ranatunga’s nose while he was batting in a 1996 ODI final, at the SCG. What “Heals” said can’t be repeated here, but it was so effective Ranatunga almost exploded, then imploded, shouting and waving his arms all over the shop. But he sure didn’t last long in the middle – and the Aussies won by just nine runs, because Ranatunga did his loll.

The most telling sledge was Steve Waugh to Hershelle Gibbs when the South African dropped a sitter off Steve, on 56. The skipper went on to crack a brilliant, unbeaten 120 in a 1999 World Cup group game the Aussies had to win – they did, with just two balls to go.

“You’ve just dropped the World Cup” was Steve’s immediate sledge. Hershelle wasn’t worth a stamp after that, he was a shattered man. The Aussies went onto win the semi next game on averages, also against South Africa with a 213 tie, and the World Cup, after being dead in the water, until the dropped catch.

Let’s face it, sledging is an art, and providing it’s not in any way racist, which is totally unacceptable under all circumstances, there’s a place in sport for some well-chosen words to rattle the opposition – it’s all part of being competitive.

For those who reckon sledging is too hot, get out of the kitchen.

For administrators who want their sport to be so squeaky clean, so pristine, so boring, they must believe in Santa Claus, and the tooth-fairy, if they want to wipe out sledging – it’s not the real world.

There’s no more telling a venue than a court room, where barristers are past-masters at sledging by needling a witness, looking for a weak point. And if they go too far, they simply withdraw the question - but in the minds of the jurors the question is still there, even if the judge warns them to ignore it. That’s human nature.

Where cricket administrators are on the right track is keeping the likes of Brad Williams and Irfan Pathan in check – there’s no place for those who treat their opposition, with contempt.

But sledging will always be on the agenda, admin or not. There are two umpires, and two captains, who should be the sole arbitrators as to how far sledging should go – not make a hard, fast law from off the field.



And sledging will still be there in the 26th century – so let’s get on with the game.
 
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SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Hi

Are you posting on BBC's TMS under the pseudonym Cricket Expert ?
 

Bapu Rao Swami

U19 12th Man
SJS said:
Hi

Are you posting on BBC's TMS under the pseudonym Cricket Expert ?

Yes Swarnjeet Singh, I joined that forum some days back and have quit after the numerous personal insults on me.

Why is there a problem?
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
No none, Bapu. I thought some smart guy was palming off your comments on another message board as his own.
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Bapu Rao Swami said:
Yes Swarnjeet Singh, I joined that forum some days back and have quit after the numerous personal insults on me.

Why is there a problem?
It is a bit of a street fight there all the time. Anyway it will be good to discuss with you here.
 

DJ

School Boy/Girl Captain
Nothing wrong with a bit of banter. It's when it just degenerates into disgusting personal abuse that I have a problem with it.
 

DJ

School Boy/Girl Captain
Actually, I was talking about on-field sledging. But yes, I guess it applies to internet forums as well.
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
If you have to resort to sledging it means you are not good enough. Sledging should be banned and whoever does it should be penalized heavily. I agree with Sunny Gavaskar Aussies are not the only one to do it, almost every team does it.As far as racist remarks is concerned, IMO, Any player who makes a racist remark should be banned for 5-6 games after first incidence, 1 year after second incidence and banned for life after 3rd incidence.

That said I don't think comments like 'You have just dropped the world cup' can be considered as sledging.
 

Langeveldt

Soutie
Sledging is all part of the game, and its what makes cricket a tough sport to master...
As long as it doesnt degenerate into personal abuse, or end up in a tasteless prat like Pathan clapping his hands in a class batsmans face, then I have no problem with it...

The line has to be drawn, somewhere.. And providing it doesnt get crossed, it usually ends up as a friendly bit of banter over a beer afterwards...

I think the South Africans tend to embaress themselves a bit by it.. They dont use it to dominate, they tent to result to it when they run out of ideas... Since Cronje, the sledging element seems to have decreased, although with Andre "f***ing" Nel, get ready for an expletive explosion of Mervesque proportions...

The most effective sledging technique was the psychological dismantelling of Darryl Cullinan by Shane Warne.. I remember he gave Andrew Hudson a fearful volley of abuse as well.. And in the same period i suspect McMillan, Symmo, Hansie and AD probably threw their toys out of the pram too... Especially when Symmo got handed a tinny full of urine by an Aussie spectator... Gawd those were the days lol....

Without sledging, where would classics like this have come from? I make no apology for repeating this by the way...


Glenn McGrath - Hey, why are you so fat?
Eddo Brandes - Glenn, because every time I make love to your wife she gives me a biscuit.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
Langeveldt said:
Without sledging, where would classics like this have come from? I make no apology for repeating this by the way...


Glenn McGrath - Hey, why are you so fat?
Eddo Brandes - Glenn, because every time I make love to your wife she gives me a biscuit.
these are "classics" of a very dubious kind and exactly what relevance do they have on a cricket field? worse still, some of these "expert sledgers" can just dish it out, they just can't take it.....i agree that in the heat of the moment, expletives do fly out of your mouth without you even thinking about it....and depending on the severity, they can be dealt with by the umpires and match referees....however there is really no excuse for systematic, deliberate abuse and they should not be condoned in any way.
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Langeveldt said:
Without sledging, where would classics like this have come from? I make no apology for repeating this by the way...


Glenn McGrath - Hey, why are you so fat?
Eddo Brandes - Glenn, because every time I make love to your wife she gives me a biscuit.
And then there are classics like this :-
Mcgrath to Sarwan :-
"If you ever f---ing mention my wife again, I will f---ing rip your f---ing throat out."
 

Swervy

International Captain
Sanz said:
And then there are classics like this :-
Mcgrath to Sarwan :-
"If you ever f---ing mention my wife again, I will f---ing rip your f---ing throat out."
seems reasonable to me..considering the circumtances
 

PY

International Coach
As much as I feel bad for McGrath, he brought that on himself if the scripts I read were accurate of what happened.
 

Langeveldt

Soutie
PY said:
As much as I feel bad for McGrath, he brought that on himself if the scripts I read were accurate of what happened.
Scripts! :)

You make it sound like a Shakesperian production.
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Swervy said:
seems reasonable to me..considering the circumtances
Did someone say that you are an Australian living in England ? ;)

Wasn't it the same mcgrath who has been party to abusing cricketers in the past, bringing their personal lives onto cricket field in the name of Mental disintegration.
 

Sehwag309

Banned
SJS said:
Hi

Are you posting on BBC's TMS under the pseudonym Cricket Expert ?
Can u give me a link of this BBC forum, I am hearing about it for a long time and the nonsenese that takes place there
 

Langeveldt

Soutie
Sanz said:
Did someone say that you are an Australian living in England ? ;)

Wasn't it the same mcgrath who has been party to abusing cricketers in the past, bringing their personal lives onto cricket field in the name of Mental disintegration.
Well, he had it coming.. But that doesnt make Sarwans comments any less/more acceptable...
 

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Langeveldt said:
Well, he had it coming.. But that doesnt make Sarwans comments any less/more acceptable...
What Mcgrath and company have been doing (in the name of Mental disintegration) for years isn't acceptable either. If you abuse other players on the field, Insult them then you better be ready for the retaliation.

Mcgrath and company repeatedly taunted Sarwan about being Gay or something. AFAIK Sarwan didn't make any comments reagrding Mcgrath's wife.
 

Anil

Hall of Fame Member
Sanz said:
AFAIK Sarwan didn't make any comments reagrding Mcgrath's wife.
i think sarwan did say something about mcgrath's wife, but i am pretty sure at that moment, he didn't remember about her suffering from cancer or something....here was a guy dishing out dirty abuse as was his wont, i am sure sarwan just tried to give as good as he got....if mcgrath was so sensitive, he should have kept his dirty mouth shut about other people and concentrated on playing cricket....the old adage about people in glass houses not throwing stones applies here.....
:@
 

marc71178

Eyes not spreadsheets
Sanz said:
And then there are classics like this :-
Mcgrath to Sarwan :-
"If you ever f---ing mention my wife again, I will f---ing rip your f---ing throat out."

Seems quite mild for McGrath.
 

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