|
|
|
|
|
|
`On Ganguly's behalf, I apologise' Wisden CricInfo staff - December 20, 2001
We asked for your views on Michael Vaughan's controversial dismissal. Was it a moment of madness? Was it unsportsmanlike of India to appeal, as Vaughan suggested and Nasser Hussain implied? The e-mails have been pouring in, most but by no means all taking the Indians' side. Here is a selection of views sympathetic to Vaughan
On Ganguly's behalf, I apologise From the clip it seems to me that no one appealed except Sarandeep, which wasn't so much an appeal as an instinctive reaction of a very inexperienced player. The umpire had no choice. However, at this point Ganguly should have intervened and withdrawn the appeal (I'm not sure if that is allowed by the rules but it's stupid if it's not). It should have been clear to everyone near the bat that Vaughan's intention was purely to return the ball to the fielder and there was no way the ball was going to hit the stumps. People come up with justification along the lines that England or any other team would have done the same. Even so, this was an opportunity for India and Sourav to set an example. They (He) showed poor sportsmanship and violated the spirit of the game. On his behalf I offer apologies for whatever they're worth. Lalit Bhatia
Vaughan was right .. but too frank
Vaughan was naive, but Ganguly should have stepped in While the right of the Indians to appeal is certainly within the letter of the law, it was not within the spirit. Surely the law was introduced to stop you defending your stumps with your hand. That ball was going nowhere near the stumps. Had the situation been reversed, although I am sure someone would have appealed on the England team, resulting in a raised finger, I like to think that Nasser Hussain would have withdrawn the appeal, as most other Test captains would, Waugh, Waqar and Jayasuriya included. It appears that Ganguly lacks an appreciation of the subtler side of the game. Kevin Osman
Poor sportsmanship from India |
|
|
| |||
| |||
|