The outrage at the Australians' on-field behaviour has proved that supporters are not only concerned with the results but also the manner in which the game is played.
LONDON: The outrage at the Australians' on-field behaviour during the controversy-marred Sydney Test against India has proved that supporters are not only concerned with the results but also the manner in which the game is played, former England captain Mike Atherton has said.
"The verdict on Sydney seems clear enough from the majority of cricket lovers. Australia's 16-match unbeaten run doesn't matter a damn," Atherton wrote in his column in 'The Daily Telegraph'.
The furore over the events in the second Test of the high-profile series suggested that most of the people in the country did not care about the unprecedented winning streak of their team, he felt.
"The reaction in Australia this past week shows how deeply the notion of 'the spirit of cricket' has woven itself into even the most macho of cricketing cultures.
"The phone-ins, e-mails, polls and former greats from different eras and sports who have condemned Ricky Ponting's team all suggest that.. the majority took no pleasure in Australia's victory," Atherton said.
He rubbished the notion that sledging was an integral part of the game.
"I don't believe it is as widespread in the international game as people make out, but 99 per cent of cricket is played away from the prying eyes of camera lenses and because the perception is that sledging has become part and parcel of the game, so it has increased immeasurably in club cricket.
"It is time to put an end to this pathetic and puerile nonsense," Atherton said, adding however, that "it will be impossible to legislate against."
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