23 December,2009 08:11 AM IST | | Khalid A-H Ansari
Former Indian captain Anil Kumble's criticism of ICC umpires and match referees who, in his opinion, apply double standards where Australian players are concerned, has not come a day too soon.
Writing on a cricket website, Kumble, who is respected the world over for his probity and scrupulous adherence to the spirit of the game, is livid that West Indies spin bowler Sulieman Benn was handed a one-match ban over the clash with Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson in the recent Perth Test, whereas the two Australians were only handed a fine.
Referring to his own experience, Kumble writes: "The Australians always seem to get away.
"Whatever their transgressions on the field of play, invariably it is their opponents who end up paying a price.
Somehow or the other, teams playing against the Aussies seem to invite the match referee's wrath, which is why I am not looking at the most recent incident in the Australia-West Indies series in isolation."
Regular readers of KHALIDOSCOPE will know that this column has been repeatedly and scathingly criticising ICC umpires and match referees, Mike Denness, Chris Broad and Jeff Crowe in particular, for their uneven application of the rules of the game where Indian players are concerned. Kumble makes a pointed reference to the 2008 Delhi Test in which, according to him, Gautam Gambhir was banned while Shane Watson and Simon Katich were let off for identical behaviour. On that occasion, as in last week's Perth Test, Billy Bowden was umpire and Broad match referee.
Kumble writes: "There doesn't seem to be any punishment forthcoming for someone who provokes and that to me is against the natural principles of natural justice."
Kumble is also upset at Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni being handed a compulsory two-match ban for slow over rates.
Meanwhile, in Australia despite the deluge of criticism levelled at the four Australians Haddin, Johnson, Watson and Bollinger who have been hauled over the coals in the recent series, Watson and fast bowler Peter Siddle, who is expected to return to the squad for the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan, seem unrepentant.
Although former Test cricketers, the media and fans are incensed over the overall "dirty" deportment of the Australians (see KHALIDOSCOPE above), Shane Watson said: "I'm not embarrassed. I've looked at the footage obviously it doesn't look ideal. It's one of those things that happens on the cricket field when the game is on the line."
While Shane Warne, no saint on and off the field, believes the Aussies have lost the "killer instinct", Ponting has said he will speak to his players about proper behaviour before the Melbourne Test, ostensibly at the team's traditional Christmas day lunch.
But Peter Siddle says the team's behaviour won't change and that the players will not act like a "little goody two-shoes".
"Any serious first class cricketer does have a lot of aggression out on the field. I think it's just sometimes you've got to control it, that line you can sometimes go over, we're always bordering on it. A few blokes might have got over it but it's hard to tell."
Watson also said the team would "definitely not" be more subdued against Pakistan as compared with the West Indies series.
It is believed Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland will speak to Ricky Ponting over the team's bad behaviour that marred the Perth Test.
