'Totally uncivilised', BCCI chief Sharad Pawar said of the incident during the Champions' Trophy prize-distribution ceremony involving Ricky Ponting and the victorious Australian team.
'Totally uncivilised' could apply, too, to another recent incident, in which Pakistan's Shoaib Akthar reportedly slapped coach Bob Woolmer.
'Totally uncivilized' could equally apply to Zaheer Khan, who per Sunil Gavaskar had 'misbehaved' with then coach John Wright -- an incident, Gavaskar said, that prompted Wright to decide not to renew his contract.
Player misbehavior on the field has increasingly become the norm; words like 'gamesmanship' and 'aggression' have been used to explain them away. The Ponting, Akthar, Khan incidents and others of like nature merit the question: Is indiscipline growing, is it spreading from the field of play to outside the boundary ropes?
And if yes, is it just a spill over of on-field exuberance and thus to be taken lightly, in a boys will be boys spirit? Or is it a worrying symptom of the greater disease of indiscipline? Should such incidents draw salutary punishments from the respective boards? Tell us what you think.
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