CricketBuff
4th April 2007, 00:39
Here is a nice editorial in The News, Pakistan:
Cricketing matters
Outgoing captain Inzamamul Haq's comments during his weekend press conference in Lahore, his first since returning from the Caribbean, merits a response. While he did accept responsibility as captain for the team's dismal early exit from the world cup, it has to be said that some of the things he mentioned, particularly regarding the media's relationship with the cricket team, will find few sympathisers. Inzamam rued what he said was the Pakistani media's refusal to support the team. With regard to this, the outgoing captain needs to understand that to a great extent the status that the Pakistan cricket team enjoys among most fans of the game in the country has a lot to do with its exposure in the media. As a result of this exposure, many of the players are able to considerably augment their professional income by engaging in endorsement deals and so on. Perhaps, the captain is referring to the talk shows on which former captains, players and cricket experts discussed threadbare the team's matches as they took place.
In some instances, unkind and/or unnecessary comments may have been made by those participating in such discussions and this is what may have got back to the team. In one particular instance, a well-known former player was saying all kinds of irrelevant things about the team having a foreigner as coach and the next day, after Bob Woolmer's death, the same commentator was singing the coach's praises. However, to blame the media for this is to miss the whole point about what should be the function of the print and electronic media with regard to coverage of cricket. If Inzamam is upset about the many conspiracy theories that have been doing the rounds since Pakistan's early exit, and compounded by Woolmer's mysterious and unresolved death, then blame for that partially lies on society in general. There is a marked tendency among many people to spread and believe in conspiracy theories when things seem to go wrong -- not just in cricket but even in political affairs.
In the case of cricket, this takes the form of people blaming the team and accusing it for indulging in match-fixing when it loses unexpectedly, like it did in the case of Ireland. But those who really follow cricket should know that it is a very unpredictable game so the unexpected can very much happen. For instance, New Zealand lost to Bangladesh by two wickets in a warm up match but no one blamed the Kiwis for losing deliberately. Seen from a player's point of view, this tendency among a team's fan base to immediately start accusing it of losing deliberately must be most disconcerting and this is certainly one aspect of Inzamam's remarks that one sympathises with. However, the players need to understand that given the fact that the charge of match-fixing had been proven against some players in the past, it is only natural for some fans to come to the conclusion that match-fixing is still taking place (especially given that it is so difficult to prove except by circumstantial evidence). However, the tendency to get personal with players when the team loses reflects poorly on the fans themselves and needs to be changed for the good of the game.
There is also the issue of growing religiosity among team members. While Inzamam denied that there is any such thing happening in the team under his command, it is very difficult to believe given the many reports that suggest otherwise. A new captain and a new team -- there would be, one can safely assume, many changes -- might take care of this but the PCB will have to keep a tight lid on this to ensure that the players give first priority to their job, which is to play good competitive cricket. And as for Dr Nasim Ashraf, given that there is so much professional expertise available in the form of ex-test players, he really should have quit his post and asked the patron to appoint someone else in his place
Cricketing matters
Outgoing captain Inzamamul Haq's comments during his weekend press conference in Lahore, his first since returning from the Caribbean, merits a response. While he did accept responsibility as captain for the team's dismal early exit from the world cup, it has to be said that some of the things he mentioned, particularly regarding the media's relationship with the cricket team, will find few sympathisers. Inzamam rued what he said was the Pakistani media's refusal to support the team. With regard to this, the outgoing captain needs to understand that to a great extent the status that the Pakistan cricket team enjoys among most fans of the game in the country has a lot to do with its exposure in the media. As a result of this exposure, many of the players are able to considerably augment their professional income by engaging in endorsement deals and so on. Perhaps, the captain is referring to the talk shows on which former captains, players and cricket experts discussed threadbare the team's matches as they took place.
In some instances, unkind and/or unnecessary comments may have been made by those participating in such discussions and this is what may have got back to the team. In one particular instance, a well-known former player was saying all kinds of irrelevant things about the team having a foreigner as coach and the next day, after Bob Woolmer's death, the same commentator was singing the coach's praises. However, to blame the media for this is to miss the whole point about what should be the function of the print and electronic media with regard to coverage of cricket. If Inzamam is upset about the many conspiracy theories that have been doing the rounds since Pakistan's early exit, and compounded by Woolmer's mysterious and unresolved death, then blame for that partially lies on society in general. There is a marked tendency among many people to spread and believe in conspiracy theories when things seem to go wrong -- not just in cricket but even in political affairs.
In the case of cricket, this takes the form of people blaming the team and accusing it for indulging in match-fixing when it loses unexpectedly, like it did in the case of Ireland. But those who really follow cricket should know that it is a very unpredictable game so the unexpected can very much happen. For instance, New Zealand lost to Bangladesh by two wickets in a warm up match but no one blamed the Kiwis for losing deliberately. Seen from a player's point of view, this tendency among a team's fan base to immediately start accusing it of losing deliberately must be most disconcerting and this is certainly one aspect of Inzamam's remarks that one sympathises with. However, the players need to understand that given the fact that the charge of match-fixing had been proven against some players in the past, it is only natural for some fans to come to the conclusion that match-fixing is still taking place (especially given that it is so difficult to prove except by circumstantial evidence). However, the tendency to get personal with players when the team loses reflects poorly on the fans themselves and needs to be changed for the good of the game.
There is also the issue of growing religiosity among team members. While Inzamam denied that there is any such thing happening in the team under his command, it is very difficult to believe given the many reports that suggest otherwise. A new captain and a new team -- there would be, one can safely assume, many changes -- might take care of this but the PCB will have to keep a tight lid on this to ensure that the players give first priority to their job, which is to play good competitive cricket. And as for Dr Nasim Ashraf, given that there is so much professional expertise available in the form of ex-test players, he really should have quit his post and asked the patron to appoint someone else in his place