What am I reading? Is there another country that is sledging? Jelly beans on the pitch? At least Australia are able to do better than school boy stuff!!! I am sure that England and India both complain about the Aussies behavior! best get things in order at home first I think!
The Nottingham Test has been played against a backdrop of sledging and other less-than-impressive behaviour from both sides. England’s rather purile use of jelly beans to try to get under Zaheer Khan’s skin was the most reported example, but that’s the tip of the iceburg. In The Daily Telegraph, Simon Briggs says both teams are to blame.
India used to be a deferential sort of team, and a soft touch on foreign soil. But that was before the arrival of Sourav Ganguly, the man with the thickest skin in cricket. He turned them into a more streetwise, self-confident crew, and in this series they have stood up to England's bullying tactics and then replied in kind.
The jelly bean incident is in danger of distracting attention from the real issue - the gracelessness of both sides' conduct. A little edge is a good thing in sport: it shows everyone is committed to the fray. But when sledging becomes systematic, and bowlers insist on finishing each follow-through with a piercing stare, the whole process is subject to the law of diminishing returns. It just gives an impression of pettiness and angst, and that is not going to attract any extra converts to what should be a beautiful game.
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