Melbourne: Jonny Bairstow was controversially stumped in the recently concluded Test at Lord’s. Criticizing the “hypocrisy and lack of consistency” shown by some in this regard, former International Cricket Council (ICC) Elite Panel umpire Simon Taufel said when people don’t like the way dismissals are done under the Laws of Cricket. He talks about the ‘spirit of the game’. After Bairstow’s controversial stumping in the second Ashes Test, people like England coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes said it was not in keeping with the spirit of the game. Taufel wrote in a long post on ‘Linkedin’, ‘My experience is that when people do not like the way they are dismissed under the Laws of Cricket, they cite the spirit of the game to support their point of view.’
He wrote, ‘Was Johnny Bairstow’s dismissal at Lord’s a violation of sporting spirit? Have you ever seen an umpire telling the fielding team that it is not allowed to attempt stumping while standing behind the wicket-keeper?’
He wrote, ‘Was Johnny Bairstow’s dismissal at Lord’s a violation of sporting spirit? Have you ever seen an umpire telling the fielding team that it is not allowed to attempt stumping while standing behind the wicket-keeper?’
Taufel said, ‘Did anyone complain when Bairstow tried to get Marnus (Labushen) out like this in the first innings. What did Jonny Bairstow say about his dismissal? He remained quite silent. Why?’
After Bairstow’s dismissal, Australia faced bad behavior from the spectators during the rest of the match. The spectators booed the visiting team and chanted ‘the same old Aussies, always the cheaters’. Apart from the Prime Ministers of both the countries, several former and current sportspersons gave their views on the issue. Taufel wrote, ‘The hypocrisy and lack of consistency shown by some individuals and groups is quite interesting and worrying for the future of our sport. Perhaps only I have this attitude here.