Australian tide turns against axed Watson
Source: Agencies |
March 14, 2013, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
AUSTRALIAN cricket folklore is stocked with tales of 'loveable larrikins' who have made winning look easy, or unleashed the kind of dry one-liners on opponents that withstand the tests of time.
Here's a tip for young players, though: don't try it on the coach or captain, particularly when you're losing.
The fallout from the suspension of four players, including vice-captain Shane Watson, for one test match during the tour of India for failing to submit a self-critique to coach Mickey Arthur by deadline has crossed into a third day in Australia.
The announcement was initially derided and ridiculed by former players, including some Australian greats, for being too severe for what amounted to players failing to do their homework.
But the sentiment started turning against the players by yesterday, with the Courier-Mail newspaper in Watson's home state of Queensland blaring the headline "Fat, Late and Lazy" across its back page. All the while, Arthur has kept up his defense of the bans.
Pregnant wife
Watson quit the tour and returned to Sydney on Tuesday to spend time with his pregnant wife before the birth of their first child, saying he needed to think about his future. He was still saying the punishment didn't fit the crime when he landed at Sydney International.
But with back-to-back Ashes series in England and Australia starting in August, there's no time for a fractured team.
Arthur wrote in a blog for Cricket Australia yesterday that "back chat" and "giving attitude" had reached unacceptable levels within the squad, and the failure by Watson, fast bowlers James Pattinson and Mitchell Johnson and backup batsman Usman Khawaja to submit their appraisals was the last straw.
"Being late for a meeting, high skinfolds, wearing the wrong attire, back-chat or giving attitude are just some examples of these behavioral issues that have been addressed discretely but continue to happen," Arthur wrote. "If we're deadly serious about getting back to No. 1 in the world, all players need to raise the bar and lift their game."
Captain Michael Clarke said it was no coincidence that the poor discipline and form slump were simultaneous.
Arthur, a former South Africa coach who was the first foreigner appointed to the helm of the Australian team, was shocked by the fallout since Australia slipped 0-2 down in a four-test series in India after two heavy defeats.
However, respected cricket writer and commentator Robert Craddock published columns for News Ltd telling readers not to feel sorry for the suspended cricketers.
"This day has been coming for some time," he said. "Around Australia yesterday, talkback radio lines were jammed with callers saying this was a classic case of a sledgehammer being used to swat a fly. Of course it was, but that doesn't make it wrong."
Here's a tip for young players, though: don't try it on the coach or captain, particularly when you're losing.
The fallout from the suspension of four players, including vice-captain Shane Watson, for one test match during the tour of India for failing to submit a self-critique to coach Mickey Arthur by deadline has crossed into a third day in Australia.
The announcement was initially derided and ridiculed by former players, including some Australian greats, for being too severe for what amounted to players failing to do their homework.
But the sentiment started turning against the players by yesterday, with the Courier-Mail newspaper in Watson's home state of Queensland blaring the headline "Fat, Late and Lazy" across its back page. All the while, Arthur has kept up his defense of the bans.
Pregnant wife
Watson quit the tour and returned to Sydney on Tuesday to spend time with his pregnant wife before the birth of their first child, saying he needed to think about his future. He was still saying the punishment didn't fit the crime when he landed at Sydney International.
But with back-to-back Ashes series in England and Australia starting in August, there's no time for a fractured team.
Arthur wrote in a blog for Cricket Australia yesterday that "back chat" and "giving attitude" had reached unacceptable levels within the squad, and the failure by Watson, fast bowlers James Pattinson and Mitchell Johnson and backup batsman Usman Khawaja to submit their appraisals was the last straw.
"Being late for a meeting, high skinfolds, wearing the wrong attire, back-chat or giving attitude are just some examples of these behavioral issues that have been addressed discretely but continue to happen," Arthur wrote. "If we're deadly serious about getting back to No. 1 in the world, all players need to raise the bar and lift their game."
Captain Michael Clarke said it was no coincidence that the poor discipline and form slump were simultaneous.
Arthur, a former South Africa coach who was the first foreigner appointed to the helm of the Australian team, was shocked by the fallout since Australia slipped 0-2 down in a four-test series in India after two heavy defeats.
However, respected cricket writer and commentator Robert Craddock published columns for News Ltd telling readers not to feel sorry for the suspended cricketers.
"This day has been coming for some time," he said. "Around Australia yesterday, talkback radio lines were jammed with callers saying this was a classic case of a sledgehammer being used to swat a fly. Of course it was, but that doesn't make it wrong."
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