Tour likely to continue after ICC sacks

umpire


By Julian Linden
SYDNEY (Reuters) - India's troubled tour of Australia is

expected to proceed as planned after the International

Cricket Council (ICC) bowed to pressure on Tuesday and

sacked umpire Steve Bucknor.
The ICC caved in to India's demands to axe Bucknor from

next week's third test in Perth as well as appointing match

referee Ranjan Madugalle as a mediator to resolve the bitter

dispute between the teams following last week's ill-tempered

match in Sydney.
The Indian cricket board (BCCI) immediately welcomed the

moves and said it was likely the tour would resume after it

was suspended on Monday.
"Definitely I'm happy," BCCI president Sharad Pawar told

reporters in New Delhi.
"Particularly I'm grateful to the Australian board for

taking a very positive approach in the matter."
The BCCI had told their players to remain in Sydney rather

than travel to Canberra for their next practice game, until

Harbhajan Singh's appeal against a three-match suspension

was heard.
Harbhajan was banned for calling Australian all-rounder

Andrew Symonds a "monkey" but has denied the charges

and appealed against the ruling.
ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed confirmed that Harbhajan

would be allowed to resume playing until the case was decided

but there was no guarantee it would be heard before the third test starts in Perth next Wednesday.
BOWDEN IN
However, a separate case into allegations of abusive language

by Australian all-rounder Brad Hogg would be heard before

the next match started, the ICC said.
Speed is hopeful the game will go ahead as planned after the

ICC appointed New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden to officiate

alongside Pakistan's Asad Rauf.
India wanted Bucknor sacked as punishment for a series of

blunders the 61-year-old West Indian made in the Sydney test

that contributed to their defeat.
Speed said the ICC did not normally allow member nations to

interfere with the umpires but the change was necessary to ensure

the tour continued.
"Steve accepts that his presence was a problem and in the best

interests of the game he accepted the decision," Speed said.
"It is an extraordinary set of circumstances and we want to take some

of the tension out of the situation."
Speed said Madugalle would fly to Perth to speak to Australia captain

Ricky Ponting and Indian skipper Anil Kumble before the match.
Relations between the two teams have hit rock bottom since last

week's drama-charged match in Sydney which ended with Kumble

accusing the Australians of breaching the spirit of cricket.
"We are bringing Ranjan in as a facilitator in an effort to prevent

any ill-feeling that may have been present at the Sydney test from

rolling over to Perth," Speed said.
"I believe the captains need to sit with Rajan Madugalle and listen

to what he has to say and express to him what their problems are,

resolve those issues and move forward."
Australia lead the four-match series 2-0 after wins in Melbourne and Sydney

Sack Ponting, he turned his cricketers
into wild dogs, says Roebuck of Oz


One of the most respected names in Australian cricket
circles today called for the sacking of captain Ricky Ponting
for turning "a group of professional cricketers into wild dogs"
and said it's a surprise why the Indians haven't gone home
yet since "there is no justice for them in this country, nor
any manners".
Writing in The Sydney Morning Herald, Peter Roebuck, who
commands respect Down Under, described the home side's
win "the ugliest performance put up by an Australian side for
20 years."
"If Cricket Australia cares a fig for the tattered reputation of
our national team in our national sport, it will not for a moment
longer tolerate the sort of arrogant and abrasive conduct seen
from the captain and his senior players over the past few days.
Beyond comparison it was the ugliest performance put up by an
Australian side for 20 years. The only surprising part of it is that
the Indians have not packed their bags and gone home. There
is no justice for them in this country, nor any manners," he wrote.
Roebuck also tore into other senior Australian players, writing, "
That the senior players in the Australian team are oblivious to the
fury they raised among many followers of the game in this country
and beyond merely confirms their own narrow and self-obsessed
viewpoint. Doubtless they were not exposed to the messages that
poured in from distressed enthusiasts aghast to see the scenes of
bad sportsmanship and triumphalism presented at the SCG during
and after the Test. Pained past players rang to express their disgust.
It was a wretched and ill-mannered display and not to be endured
from any side, let alone an international outfit representing a proud
sporting nation."
Pointing out that "Australia itself has been embarrassed" by the
behaviour of its players, Roebuck adds: "The notion that Ponting can
hereafter take the Australian team to India is preposterous. He has
shown not the slightest interest in the well-being of the game, not the
slightest sign of diplomatic skills, not a single mark of respect for his
accomplished and widely admired opponents."
Expressing support for Harbhajan, Roebuck, a former county captain,
writes: "Harbhajan Singh can be an irritating young man but he is head
of a family and responsible for raising nine people. And all the Australian
elders want to do is to hunt him from the game. Australian fieldsmen fire
insults from the corners of their mouths, an intemperate Sikh warrior
overreacts and his rudeness is seized upon. It might impress barrack room
lawyers." Roebuck writes: "In the past few days Ponting has presided over a
performance that dragged the game into the pits. He turned a group
of professional
cricketers into a pack of wild dogs. As much can be told from the conduct
of his closest allies in the team. As usual, Matthew Hayden crossed
himself upon reaching three figures in his commanding second innings,
a gesture he does not perform while wearing the colours of his state.
Exactly how he combines his faith with throwing his weight around on
the field has long bemused opposing sides, whose fondness for him ran
out a long time ago. Hayden has much better in him."
Slamming young Michael Clarke, who has been touted as a future captain,
Roebuck writes: "That his mind was in disarray could be told from his batting.
In the first innings he offered no shot to a straight ball and in the second he
remained at the crease after giving an easy catch to slip. On this evidence
Clarke cannot be promoted to the vice-captaincy of his country. It is a captain's
primary task to rear his younger players and to prepare his successor
for the ordeals of office. Nothing need be said about the catch Clarke took
in the second innings except that in the prevailing circumstances the umpires
were ill-advised to take anyone's word for anything."
Probably the worst aspect of the Australians' performance was their conduct
at the end, writes Roebuck. "When the last catch was taken they formed into a
huddle and started jumping up and down like teenagers at a rave" Not one player
so much as thought about shaking hands with the defeated and departing."
Finally, Roebuck sums up with another go at Ponting: "Ponting has not
provided the leadership expected from an Australian cricket captain and
so must be sacked. On this evidence the time has also come to thank
Hayden and Gilchrist for their services. None of them are bad fellows.
All will look back on this match not as their finest hour but their worst.
Obviously a new captain and side is required. But that is a task for another day.
It is possible to love a country and not its cricket team."

Bucknor replaced for third Australia v India test

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - West Indian umpire Steve

Bucknor has been replaced for next week's third test

between Australia and India, the International Cricket

Council (ICC) said on Tuesday.
ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed told a news conference

that New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden would stand in his place.

Cultural divide fuels Australia-

India cricket crisis




SYDNEY (Reuters) - The cricket world is in crisis, the multi-million

dollar India tour of Australia is in jeopardy, and bilateral ties are

being tested, as charges of racism, cultural divisions and unsporting

behaviour soil cricket's image.
Indian fans are burning effigies of umpires after incorrect decisions

contributed to the country's defeat in the second test against Australia

in Sydney on Sunday, and an Indian player was convicted of racism

for calling an Australian player a "monkey".
India is refusing to play rest of the games and headed off to Bondi

Beach on Tuesday for a game of volley ball with lifesavers, insulted

by the umpires' decisions, racism charge, and allegations an

Australian player called Indians "bastards" during the test.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called on Tuesday for

cricketing authorities to settle the matter "at the first available

opportunity", while the country's foreign minister said bilateral ties

would survive the crisis but called for calm.
"One of the things that we do share in terms of cultural or sporting

activities is that both nations and both peoples have a great love of

cricket," said Foreign Minister Stephen Smith.
"I don't see any problems in the relationship arising through the test

series. We all have strong views as cricket fans about test matches.

I think, is the time for cool heads to prevail."
Australians and Indians follow cricket with fanatical fervour. National

pride is at stake during test matches. But while cricket unites both

nations, the cultural divide between the two seems to be escalating

the crisis between cricket's two most powerful nations.
When Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh called Australian Andrew Symonds,

of British and West Indian origin, a "monkey" it was declared racism by

cricketing officials and he was suspended for three matches.
Indians argue that "monkey" is not racially insulting in their country.

The monkey god Hanuman in India is a hero -- a provider of courage, hope,

knowledge, intellect and devotion.
Indian officials have appealed the decision, arguing umpires took Symonds'

word over Harbhajan's, but Australia claims Harbhajan has abused Symonds

during previous matches.
"The Indian board realises that the game of cricket is paramount but so too is

the honor of the Indian team and for that matter every Indian," said the board

in a statement.
Indian fans have home burnt effigies of the second test umpires. "Indian team,

come back home," chanted fans in Jammu.
"The slur of racial abuse on Harbhajan Singh, that has assumed

larger proportions in this country, because we have been

an anti-racist country. If he is hanged that is what India is

not willing to accept," former Indian test player and now

commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu told Australia's Sky television.
Further angering India is a claim that an Australian player

called the Indian team "bastards" -- in Australia the word bastard

is often used affectionately by laconic Australians, but in India it

carries a great slur.
"This is a serious term," said India team manager Chetan Chauhan.

"It has a lot of bad meanings back in India. In India, we do not have

children without getting married. It is a taboo and it is not accepted

in the society."
The crisis is also about the apparent "gentleman ethos" of cricket and

alleged unsportsman-like behaviour.
Many Australian fans, have joined Indian fans, in slamming their team

after some players accepted the incorrect umpire decisions and

refused to honourably concede they were out.
"Like most Australians, I felt somewhat empty and embarrassed at

Australia's 'win' in the second test against India. This is clearly a

victory that we cannot celebrate," Stuart Gardiner wrote in a letter in

The Australian newspaper on Tuesday.
Australia's cricket team has a reputation for playing hard, and for

sledging or abusing opponents on the field, which many commentators

say has annoyed the cricket world for years.
"The question that needs to be ask is: 'What turned fun-loving

cricketers and fans from being good sportsmen on and off the field

into overzealous, competitive, win-at-all-costs people?," Stephen

Hagan from the University of Southern Queensland asked in an

opinion article in The Australian

Time to go, says Bucknor's old mate

"Before they decide to withdraw him from the third Test,

I think he should quit," says umpire A V Jayprakash about

Steve Bucknor, his partner during his first international match

in 1997, in the wake of his wrong decisions in India's second

Test against Australia.
Bucknor was also on field in Jayaprakash's most famous game

at Kotla, when Kumble got a perfect 10. And as fate would have

it, Jayaprakash was the TV umpire during Bucknor's 100th Test

in 2005 at Eden Gardens.
"When players stop enjoying your umpiring, one should call it quits.

I did the same. My only fear is, in case Bucknor is pulled out of the

Perth Test, he will always be remembered for the mistakes

he made in Sydney. All those early years when he made a reputation

for himself as a top cricket umpire will go down the drain," says

58-year-old Jayaprakash about 61-year-old Bucknor.
While there have been several instances of Bucknor's errors

going repeatedly against the Indians, Jayaprakash vividly

remembers the senior umpire's forgettable Test involving Pakistan

at Eden Gardens.
Jayaprakash was the TV umpire in that game of the 2005 series.

As light faded at the end of Day 3, Sachin Tendulkar was given

caught behind off Abdul Razzaq. The ball seemed to have missed

the bat by some margin.
"In the last few years, because of his age, he has made quite a few

mistakes," says Jayaprakash. But he is quick to add that the

West Indian wasn't quite anti-India. "I have seen the era when the

Indian crowds used to love him. He was a star all over the world."