England shame name and game

England shamed not only themselves, but the revered game of cricket they gave to the world with their unacceptable and poor behaviour during the closing stages of the First Ashes Test against Australia at Cardiff on Monday.

When James Anderson and Monty Panesar the last two batsmen were fighting for dear life to save what looked like imminent defeat, what unfolded was to say the least disgraceful incidents that should have no place at this level of the game.

At the moment these incidents took place, to everyone from the players out in the middle to those taking in the action on the ground and the millions watching it on TV, the action was nail-biting.

With Australia striving for victory and Anderson and Panesar defending for dear life, it was not only annoying, but a disgrace to see the England 12th man running on to the field, obviously in an endeavour to waste time and give the batsmen some unsolicited advice. Now this shame was enacted twice. Then with everyone on their seats edge, the England physio Steve McCaig ran onto the field. Now there was no injury to Anderson or Panesar who were stroking freely. Unable to stomach this nonsense and time wasting tactics, umpires Aleem Dar and Billy Doctrove stepped in to order the physio out. Australian skipper Ricky Ponting would have been fuming and we could imagine the words he would have liked to have mouthed and would have been holding back with great reluctance.

Now why did the England skipper Andrew Strauss and the management have to act in such an unsporting manner? These incidents could not have taken place without the blessings of Strauss and the management. The 12th man and the physio would not have launched on their own.

This poor behaviour came in for scathing attacks allround. It shamed everyone who were England and it even black marked their former greats and administrators who had done wonders to keep this revered game clean and for everyone to play.

At the time this article is being read the Second Test would be in progress at the home of cricket Lords, and it is hoped that those who matter would have lectured to the England team and management before the Lords game started on that time honoured axiom that - it is not the winning or losing that matters, but how one played the game. This axiom is hammered into every cricketer at junior level.

It is apparent that the actors in this disgraceful episode had been ignorant or had not been told the values of it and explained this sacred axiom. During our cricketing days at St. Benedict's College, our cricket master A. Gnanapragasam would give each cricketer a copy of that wonderful poem by Rudyard Kipling "IF" , read and explain every word of it after practice. It would not be a bad idea to give copies of this poem to the England cricketers and its management.

If it is winning at all costs that matters to England then it is a poor and sad reflection on their game and all that it stands for. The sooner they get this out of their system the better it would be for the cricketers to come and it would also make it a better world for them to play the game.

The England Cricket Board and the International Cricket Council will be failing in their duties if they do not at least reprimand the culprits who were instrumental in bringing disgrace to the game.

This irresponsible behaviour took away the glitz and the glamour from the performance of Paul Collingwood, James Anderson and Monty Panesar who were defending for dear life to save England from certain defeat and which they finally succeeded in doing. Their stubborn and back to the wall defence saved England from going one down in this Five Test Ashes series. After Collingwood showed the way, Anderson and Panesar took it from there and whatever Ponting threw at them were safely negotiated for nearly 10 overs.

We are not trying to be wise after the event and question Ponting's captaincy. But with the last two men at the wicket, it would not have been a bad idea to crowd the batsmen and get his pacemen to aim at the rib cage and force them to pop a catch. Lets hope that the remaining Four Test matches between the two great cricketing countries would be played in the best of spirits and no further ugly incidents like the one everyone was unfortunate to see unfold at Cardiff, would be enacted again.

To sum it all,one team was playing the game and the other was not.

Pakistan's poor showing

It was sad the way the Pakistanis capitulated in the Two Test matches against Sri Lanka at the Galle International Stadium and the P. Sara Oval.

There was no cricketing reason for the Pakistanis to surrender so meekly. The wickets at both venues held no terror and the Lankan bowling too did not look that threatening.

But apparently it was some other reason that was helping heap shame on their game.And not long after the completion of the Second Test, their former leg spinning great and former chairman of selectors Abdul Qadir went on record saying that there was factionalism and poor team spirit, a split in the team and that is what is causing them to lose.

Qadir is convinced that the change in captains from Shoaib Malik to Younus Khan that has caused the split. Having been the chairman of selectors he must be knowing.

But it did not take long for Ijaz Butt, Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board to rubbish that statement from Qadir.

Sanda Poulier no more

It is with sadness that I mention the passing away of former Sports Editor of the now defunct "Times of Ceylon" Sanda Poulier at the ripe old age of 90 in Moorabbin, Australia a few days back.

I was readying to go for the Second Cricket Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan when former "Timesman" and colleague M.J.M. Zarook broke the sad news to me.

Zarook,fondly known as "Zorro" to his friends and colleagues, mentioned that on his wedding day, Poulier gave him four horses and said this is my wedding present to you, and all four horses won returning a thumping amount! Now Poulier was the Sports Editor when I joined as a cub sports reporter in the early 1960s. He immediately made me at ease and explained and taught me all what sports reporting, sub editing and layout was. In those days juniors were given a good grounding before being launched onto the field. It is that grooming and grounding that is still helping me in the field that I am in. I am eternally grateful to Poulier for that. Poulier's forte however was in the field of horse racing.

He wrote and tipped under the pen name "Brown Jack" and he was an expert in tipping winners.

He migrated to Australia in the early sixties.But kept in touch by writing about the achievements of Sri Lankan sportsmen in Australia and especially about boxing champion Malcolm Bulner and his misfortune in not being able to represent Australia in the ring at the Olympic Games.

He leaves his wife Kitty who was a teacher at Lindsay Girls School, Bambalapitiya.

Thank you Mr. Poulier and may your soul rest in peace.