Except it's not just the Kiwis mate.
I can't think of any other player that is so loved at home, yet so universally despised by the rest of the world. I mean every country turns out their pantomime villains that for reasons right or wrong get tagged as being knobs, but in most cases (on here at least) that tends to be acknowledged by the home fans as well as opposition.
When you hear Aussies speak of Brad Haddin (especially his team mates and coaching staff etc) they speak of this great servant, incredible team man and mentor etc...........yet for the rest of us, he was one of (if not the) biggest ****wits to have played the game in the last 20 years and contributed nothing positive to the game.
That's an excellent point. Here's the thing about Haddin, you can't really have a conversation about Haddin's behaviour without talking about the greater point about a certain aspect in Australian sport culture, or more specifically cricket culture.
Australians take a lot of pride in their sporting achievements and identity, perhaps more so than some of the other nations, absolutely nothing wrong with that. But sometimes this pride manifests in different ways in certain sections of the culture, and what comes out is an air of hypocrisy.. And this is the funny thing, no one in Australia is actually going to see it that way, because for them it's just pride in the way we play, but to everyone outside it will stink of rampant hypocrisy.
A few examples.
In 2010 Ashes, in the fourth test I believe, there was an appeal for a bat pad catch for Clarke, I think the original decision was not out, England reviewed, Clarke waited, and waited for the final decision which was out. At the end of the day, Clarke apologised for waiting because he said he knew he was out and should have just walked.
Mark Waugh blasted him in the media for apologising because it was ***** of him to do so..this is not how Australians play the game..and 'in our Australian team, this kind of behaviour would never be tolerated'.
Flash back 2013, Stuard Broad stands his ground, and his branded a cheat by Autstralia including their coach Darren Lehmann.
In the 2005 Ashes, Ricky Ponting asked his counterpart Vaughan to have a tacit understanding, that we would trust the fielder's call for tough catches, if he says he caught it, we will walk. When Vaughan refused, he was heavily criticised in the media.
In the 2011 World Cup game with Pakistan, Ponting tries a late cut, the ball hits the face of the bat (in close up we can see that, not in real time) into Akmal's gloves and miraculously he doesn't drop it, umpire gives not out, Ponting stands his ground, with a confused look on his face that says "what are you appealing for"
It was ultimately given out, but during the appeal, Umar Akmal who was fielding at mid wicket, started appealing loudly and Haddin who was at non striker's gave him a shove out of annoyance that he would appeal.
In 2010 Ashes, Ponting and Siddle started misbehaving with Aleem Dar after the third umpire over turned a decision that Dar had originally given out, and Ponting kept on and on and on, stopping the game in the process. The Australian commentators at that time, Healy, Chappel, Taylor said not ONE word about this behaviour. Can you imagine if a Kohli or Sanga had done this? Chappel would be writing a column on Cricinfo blasting that behaviour, not to mention how Healy would react in the commentary box.
How does this relate to Haddin? He represented the worst of this dark aspect of Australian cricket culture. "this is the way we play the game, **** off, and we will do whatever it takes to win". There is nothing legally wrong with this kind of behaviour, you can argue for morally, though, but I try not to use morality in these matters. My problem is, the hypocrisy. So we can stand our ground when we know we are out, but if the other guy does it he is a cheat? We can try to break Jimmy's ****ing arm and KP's ribs but if Jardine does it he is an asshole?
Haddin's behavior in the 2015 world cup was not a one off. He has behaved this way throughout his career, and it appeared he was almost happy to be the bad guy for the sake of his team. And he was championed as this working class hero in Australia, prepared to do whatever it takes, no matter how dirty to win the game. And the Australian morality brigade in Chappel, Healy, Waugh, Lehmann don't even see it as hypocritical. I can sort of see that for them it is just an immense national pride to play that way...it's just that they would be screaming 'cheat' if someone else did it.