Renowned commentator Harsha Bhogle, on Friday, voices his opinion against the criticism India all-rounder Deepti Sharma has gotten, mostly from one section of media, after she’d decided to run-out England batter Charlotte Dean at the non-striker’s end when Dean was backing up outside the bowling crease to win the Lord’s ODI and seal the series 3-0.
The game had reached a tense situation with England needing 17 runs to win off 6.3 overs and one wicket in hand. Deepti Sharma ran into bowl to striker Freya Davies, and affected the run-out at the non-striker’s end. She’d already decided to run Dean out, having observed her make the transgression multiple times, she said later on, and stuck to her decision, leaving the batter in tears afterwards.
Deepti was perfectly within the rules – the MCC only recently changed this mode to dismissal from “unfair play” to “run out”. However, the Spirit of Cricket brigade, mostly involving ex and current English cricketers and the English media, have come down heavily on Deepti.
Harsh Bhogle comes in defence of Deepti Sharma and blasts the English media
Harsh Bhogle, who has supported this mode of dismissal ever since Ashwin did it to Buttler in the IPL three years ago, now came out in Deepti’s defence and slammed the English for their “colonial” mindset in a long thread of 8 tweets, each filled with hard-hitting words that has made everyone think at length.
“I find it very disturbing that a very large section of the media in England is asking questions of a girl who played by the laws of the game & none at all of another who was gaining an illegal advantage and was a habitual offender. That includes reasonable people & I think it is a cultural thing,” Bhogle tweeted.
He added: “The English thought it was wrong to do so & because they ruled over a large part of the cricket world, they told everyone it was wrong. The colonial domination was so powerful that few questioned it. As a result,the mindset still is that what England considers wrong should be considered wrong by the rest of the cricket world, much like the “line” the Aussies say you must not cross having decided what the line should be which is fine in their culture but may not be for others. The rest of the world is no longer obligated to think the way England does and so we see what is so plainly wrong. So too the notion that turning tracks are bad but seaming tracks are fine.”
The reason I say it is cultural is that it is what they are brought up to think. They don’t think it is wrong. The problem arises and we are guilty of it too, when people sit in judgement of each other’s approach. England wants the rest of the world not to like running out batters at the non-striker’s end and have been vitriolic and abusive towards Deepti and others who have done it. We come hard too asking others to wake up from centuries old colonial slumber.”
Speaking about the laws regarding running out of the non-striker, Bhogle said, “The easiest thing is to play by the laws of the game & stop worrying about subjective interpretation of the spirit of the game,stop forcing opinions on others.The law says the non-striker must be behind the crease till the bowler’s arm is at its highest point. If you obey that, the game will move along smoothly. If you point fingers at others, like many in England have at Deepti, you remain open to questions asked of you.”
“It is best if those in power, or who were in power, stop believing that the world must move at their bidding. As in society, where judges implement the law of the land, so too in cricket. But I remain disturbed by the vitriol directed towards Deepti. She played by the laws of the game and criticism of what she did must stop,” the commentator concluded.
