Day/night Test cricket an exercise in futility?

Whether to play or not to play day/night Test cricket is the new question. It has been the talking point in recent times. Test cricket, as it stands now, is played during the day. If and when day/night Test cricket is played, it could end up in an exercise in futility. Obviously the idea of playing day/night Test cricket arose from the fact that it could bring back the spectators who are now dwindling from Test cricket, because it lacks excitement that the 'cowboy' game provides. The diehards will not want Test cricket to be made a mockery of. Test cricket should remain Test cricket and be played the way it is being played, during the day.

Bringing back the spectators

Just to bring back the spectators and with it the money, by playing day/night Test cricket is shallow thinking. Test cricket is sacred and it must be revered and kept that way. Test cricket from time immemorial has been played with a red ball. To degrade it by introducing pink or yellow balls seems revolting. Instead of making a mockery of Test cricket, the ICC must find ways of making Test cricket more exciting so that it would attract spectators.

Anyway, the concept of introducing day/night Test cricket is still in the embryo stage. The ICC has still to resolve many issues in debate. As for us, we hope the day/night concept will be aborted in the embryo stage.

Rangana Herath-a laughing stock

Pity that Rangana Herath, the little Sri Lankan left-arm leg-spinner who is rated the best in the world, was made a laughing stock by being sent to India with the Kandurata team and then having to take the next flight home in shame.

While Sri Lanka Cricket has taken responsibility and accepted the faux pas, Herath should have known better. How or what made him make the trip that ended in humiliation is inexplicable. Herath was originally named in the Uthara Yellows team in the SLC Super 4s T20. But due to an injury he could not play. Then it was poor thinking by those who slotted him to make the trip with the Kandurata Maroons.

Played in local tournament

The Indians had the names of all those who played in the local tournament, and they were right in not allowing Herath to play in the Champions League. Being put back in the plane would surely have embarrassed Herath. At his level Herath would have felt humiliated when asked to go back. But being the world's best spinner, he should have known better and told the selectors that it was not ethical for him to go, when his name was not in the original Kandurata Maroons squad. By just rushing in where angels fear to tread, Herath became a laughing stock. Sri Lanka Cricket has taken responsibility saying it was a genuine mistake. But the damage has been done. It is a good learning experience and we hope Sri Lanka Cricket will be better off after this bitter and humiliating experience and will think carefully before committing.

Aussie cricketing agony ends

Finally the Ashes Test cricket series between the world's cricketing giants England and Australia ended with Australia who lost the prestigious Test series nil to three, having the consolation of winning the one-day series two-one. For Australia who failed to regain the all important Ashes, it was AGONY, while for England retraining the Ashes was ECSTASY. The Ashes is the ultimate in cricket between England and Australia. In the history of the Ashes series between these two great cricketing countries, never before was the series so bitterly and controversially contested. Why it had to be so was sad. These two countries played the game clean and hard and in the best of traditions and were examples to all other countries. But in the recently concluded series, sadly it was not so.

Decision Review System

Initially it was riddled with the Decision Review System, then poor umpiring, followed by cheating allegations and the bad light controversies which lowered the esteem of these two countries.

The Aussies are smarting that all-rounder Stuart Broad did not 'walk' after snicking a catch off wicket keeper Brad Haddins pads to Michael Clarke at first slip. With England sinking with 8 wickets down and a slender lead, the Aussies were in with a winning chance. The Aussies had exhausted their reviews. Had Broad been a sport and walked, Aussies reckon they could have taken the all important lead and pressed on from there and regained the Ashes. But that was conjecture. Then the umpiring too fell below level at this level. It was the DRS to blame and it was a pity that Sri Lankan umpire Kumar Dharmasena who only recently won the Best Umpire's Award had to suffer.

DRS made a joke

The Decision Review System was made a joke of at the Dialog Axiata/SLC awards ceremony by Chamida Pussvedila. With the DRS controversy raging, he had the house howling with laughter when he said he was going to introduce a new concept - ARS - Audience Review system - meaning the audience watching the action could make the decision. ICC better take note!

Then during the one-day games, there was further humour when the game was stopped for bad light with the floodlights burning brightly. The game being stopped angered the Aussie captain Michael Clarke who had an argument with the umpire. Then the existing ill-feeling was further lighted with Australia's new coach and former Aussie batsman Darren Lehmann saying that he would incite the Aussie spectators to take on Stuart Broad and make life a misery for him when the back-to-back Ashes begins in Australia in November.

Thus the controversies that were prevalent in England are sure to boil over and come, back to back in Ashes in Australia and the stage is set for another blockbuster of a five-match series that is being played for the first time between the two counties.

Ken Norton was a prize fighter

The passing away of Ken Norton at the age of 70 takes away another fighter who illumined the ring in the 1970s and '80s, along with boxers of the calibre of Larry Holmes, George Foreman and Muhammed Ali.

Norton who suffered a stroke died at a Veterans Affairs medical facility in Henderson, Nevada. He was famous for his fights with the colourful Ali. In one of the fights, he broke Ali's jaw.

In 1976, I was on a journalistic scholarship in Berlin and remember getting up early morning to watch the Ali-Norton fight on television. In those days there was no television in Sri Lanka.

Ali was the favourite. But Norton gave as good as he got and going the full distance, and in a slug fest, Norton was unlucky to lose on points. When the victor was announced, Norton could not believe that he had lost.

Upon hearing about Norton's death, former Heavyweight George Foreman said that Norton deserved his spot in the upper echelons of the sport. Norton was inducted to Internationals Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992.

Norton retired from the ring in 1981 after amassing a professional record of 42 wins- including- 33 knockouts, one draw and seven losses. Norton will always be remembered.

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