|
|
| June 27, 2003 | Friday | Rabi-us-Sani 26,1424 |
Sledging fine for creating mental pressure, says Waugh
SYDNEY, June 26: Steve Waugh says he is happy for his Australian players to create mental pressure on opposing batsmen through the controversial practice of sledging.
The hard-nosed Australian team was roundly criticised last month during the tour of the West Indies when fast bowler Glenn McGrath launched a foul-mouthed tirade at West Indian batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan during the fourth Test in Antigua.
The images of McGrath finger-pointing and screaming at Sarwan over something he apparently said prompted Australian Cricket Board chief executive James Sutherland to tell Waugh to rein in his players’ emotions.
International Cricket Council president Malcolm Gray said “greater action and more action,” should have been taken by the umpires over McGrath’s behaviour and that the Australian public viewed the flare-up as “beyond the pale.”
Umpires David Shepherd of England and India’s Srinivas Venkataraghavan took no action following McGrath’s mid-pitch rant at Sarwan.
Waugh, speaking at a luncheon here on Thursday, said he didn’t condone “saying something directly against someone,” but was happy for his players to create mental pressure with their chat.
“Our team likes to talk amongst ourselves in order to put a doubt in the batsman’s mind. I’m all for that,” he said.
“For example, if Shane Warne’s bowling into the rough outside the batsman’s legs and he’s trying to sweep, the guy at short leg might say ‘can you believe this guy’s trying to sweep Warney out of the rough?’ and the player on the other side at bat-pad might say ‘obviously these guys don’t have a TV in their rooms — they’ve got no idea what’s going on’.
“If we can get the batsman in some doubt that’s fair enough.”
Gray, a former chairman of the ACB, said some of the Australian players’ behaviour was ugly and over the odds and it was up to the ACB to develop a change in culture within the team.
He said sledging and spats occurred too regularly in cricket and that Australia was a world leader.
“Australians are not liked around the world. The messages we were getting was that the Australian public and the Australian press felt it was way over the top ... this time the Australian people believed the actions were beyond the pale,” he said.
Meanwhile, Waugh came out strongly on Thursday in defence of Bangladesh’s right to play Australia next month in the two-Test series which is expected to be heavily one-sided.
Waugh echoed team mate Adam Gilchrist’s comments after former Australia fast bowler Dennis Lillee said struggling Test nations should play in a second-tier competition.
“How are you going to get the bottom sides to improve if they keep playing other weak sides?,” Waugh said.
“I’d like to think cricket is in a better state than that. I think that’s being too elitist,” Test cricket’s second-highest run-scorer added.
“They (Bangladesh) have got to learn and they’ve got to catch up. Sri Lanka proved they could do it. Ten years after being given Test status they won the World Cup.
“So I think you’ve got to put more resources into these countries and help them out rather than say ‘you’re not good enough, we’ll see you in five years when you’ve improved’.”
Bangladesh are ranked last in the ICC’s 10-nation Test championship, losing 18 of their 19 matches since gaining Test status in 2000.
Bangladesh, coached by former Sri Lanka coach Dav Whatmore, start their tour on Friday with a four-day match against Queensland’s Academy of Sport in Brisbane.
Waugh, 38, said he was confident his side would be in good form for the first Test starting in Darwin on July 18 despite a relaxed preparation.
Waugh and Ricky Ponting led Australia to victories in the Test and one-day series against the West Indies on a two-month tour which ended three weeks ago.
Asked if this would be Australia’s most limited preparation he could recall in his world record 160-Test career, Waugh said: “I think it will be.
“I’m assuming the guys who played both the Tests and one-dayers in the West Indies won’t be picking up a bat or a ball until next week at least,” Waugh said.
“I think we’ll be scratchy...It’s a pretty low-key preparation coming into a Test series — there’s no practice matches, there’s no camp — but it’s difficult to keep having those things when the guys are away from home so much.”—AFP/Reuters
|
|
|
