No Longer A Gentleman’s Game
There was a time when cricket was synonymous with the ideals of fair play, the sportsman spirit, never using foul means for winning, courtesy even with opposing teams and not being a sore loser. The game of Cricket was used to be referred as a “Gentleman’s Game” but looking at the recent turn of events it seem like an oxymoron.
We do not have to go very far and simply look back at the events from the last couple of weeks. The incidents with Shakib Al Hasan and Ollie Robinson and the contrasting actions from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) & England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) shed enough light into a changing world and the role sports & media play in the larger scheme of things.
Can Cricket Be Called A Gentleman’s Game Anymore?
In a video that went viral few weeks ago, we all saw Shakib Al Hasan broke the stumps twice in a Dhaka Premier League game. From the looks of it, the visuals were very disturbing and disheartening. What was the punishment for the offence? A ban for three matches & monetary fine.
England’s Ollie Robinson had an amazing debut and took a cumulative 7 wickets while scoring a gritty 42 against a resilient NZ bowling attack. However, during the course of the first test, some of his previous racist & sexist tweets reemerged from 2012. These comments are completely inexcusable, even if it was an 18-year-old tweeting it who did not have a professional contract back then. The result? The ECB suspended Robinson from all international cricket until further disciplinary investigation and has announced a ‘historical review’ of England players’ social media posts.
There is no doubt that Shakib Al Hasan might go down as the best all-rounder cricket has ever seen. Definitely Bangladesh’s all-time best. But this does not mean that he can be excused from any of the unruly behavior or on field antics. Mohammad Isam has aptly commented on the growing influence of Shakib’s indiscipline and his utter disregard for the “game, his colleagues, or the officials.” Since Shakib is an integral part of the Bangladesh national team, his previous bans have been reduced just to accommodate him.
Shakib’s first public outburst came way back in 2010 when he abused a spectator who was blocking the sightscreen. In 2011, a few more instances of trouble occurred but he was not reprimanded. The first action taken against him was in 2014, when he was banned for 3 matches for displaying an inappropriate gesture on live television. A six month ban ( eventually reduced to three months) followed in 2014 due to internal disputes with coach Hathurusingha and his threats to quit international cricket. Finally, the most serious suspension was a year-long hiatus imposed by the ICC in 2019 for Shakib not reporting a bookie approach.
The history of indiscipline is not a new thing with Bangladeshi cricket. Nidahas Trophy was especially infamous for such antics. Snake-dance celebration, Shakib calling players back in the middle of a game, and Mahmudullah’s display of anger prior to his last ball six. Although these senior players have to take responsibility, there is a larger picture at play here. As per Isam the entire Bangladesh system is to blame — biased umpiring, poor administration & leadership, local club bias/corruption, points manipulation, etc. Poor environment breeds poor behavior. As simple as that.
England is not the embodiment of gentleman’s game either. Far from it. Just like Bangladesh, this is not the first in England’s cricket either.
Azeem Rafiq’s botched racism legal investigation in Yorkshire
Ben Stokes & Alex Hales’ involvement in Bristol brawl (2015)
Craig Overton’s vilifying comments to Sussex’s Ashar Zaidi (2017)
Alex Hepburn rape case (2017), which also included Englishmen Joe Clarke & Tom Kohler-Cadmore
Alex Hales’ use of recreational drugs on the eve of the 2019 World Cup.
This was just a recent list of incidents. I am sure there are several more and numerous unreported cases.
Fine Line Between Cancel Culture & Laissez-Faire?
Hales, one of the catalysts of England’s rise to the top in limited overs cricket, has yet to make a comeback despite completing rehabilitation and performing in T20 leagues. Similarly, Joe Clarke has been performing consistently in T20 Blasts circuits, but it is unlikely he will ever be selected on the international arena.
On the other hand, punishments for Shakib and co are not harsh at all. Yes, racism and anger against an umpire are two different things, but there needs to be a standardized guidance from ICC.
This gets me to my final point — where do you draw the fine line?
Cancel and woke culture, accentuated by the age of social media, has been a major factor in all this. If nobody found out about the Robinson’s tweets, would he have been reprimanded? Resurfacing social posts and twitter policing, courtesy random people sitting behind screen’s and criticizing the world, can have a major impact on someone else’s career & life. Social media is good to awaken certain conversations, but whether it should be utilized for hasty actions is another question.
The BCB has employed a more laissez-faire approach while ECB’s handling is much more extreme, influenced by cancel culture. In reality, disciplinary guidelines should be somewhere in the middle.
George Dobell offers an apt solution — Amnesty. Instead of digging up old tweets and punishing retroactively, why not accept the mistake, “outline modern-day expectations and penalties, and provide a fresh start”?
One thing is for certain — cricket is no longer a gentleman’s game. Culture and societies are evolving and cricket should follow suit, albeit in a careful manner.
