India’s noose being tightened again!

JEDDAH: It happened during the last Test series against Australia down under. And now, once again the Indian Test team find themselves on the wrong end of some harsh disciplinary actions against some of their players.

In the second Test at Mohali, it was Zaheer Khan who was the victim. His crime? Gesturing to Hayden after his dismissal, and he was fined 80 percent of his match fees. In the current Test, it was Gautam Gambhir who has fallen victim to the wrath of Chris Broad, a referee with no less partiality than Mike Procter, and who slapped him with a one-match ban. Unfortunately for the Indians, partiality favors only the fair skinned.

Gambhir’s crime it seems was elbowing Shane Watson on his way back for a second run. What the match referee Broad failed to see, and what was plainly visible to all of us was that during his first run, Gambhir had to go around Watson who had raised his arm in a manner that could be construed as threatening. Watson’s punishment? Only 10 percent of his match fees. Talk about ICC justice!

How often have we seen the Ozzies start their rounds of onfield sledging and yet are the first to cry foul when they are dished the same.

It has become a consistent practice, and is often more magnified when they are on the losing end. The Test series in Australia last winter was indeed won by the Indians, were it not for blatant errors by umpires and referees in Australia’s favor. And the Ozzie media is pathetically biased when it comes to reporting their on-field behavior.

I am glad that Gambhir is contesting the ban. India is on a winning note, and to have their star opening batsman sit out the final test which could prove to be a decisive one is indeed unfair. The BCCI has kept silent so far on the matter, perhaps content to sit on a 1-0 lead in the current series.

But the Indians must respond more vocally to ensure fair treatment from the fair-skinned match referees, and specifically Chris Broad and Mike Proctor who seem to have a knack for delivering the wrong judgment to the darker skinned players.