Sledge out the Sledging

Good Communication skills are a pre-requisite to succeed in today's competitive world. That's because words used, impinge on the listener and usually makes the speaker's case stronger. Well, communication has managed to make its presence felt, in the cricketing arena. Its not the good ol' Banter or the off field press conference we are talking about. Its the words which fly, on field, amidst an exciting game of cricket.Yup, its sledging we are taking about.

A couple of weeks back, I was lucky enough to have a glimpse, in the Times of India, about the famous sledges, which have taken place in this sport. And believe me, they were so humorous I almost fell of my chair. The listener on the field, of course, wouldn't have seen the funny side of it. That brings us to the question, is sledging acceptable?

The source of sledging lies in the frustration which develops in the mind of a bowler(generally the starter) or a fielder. The concentration of the batsmen is diverted and the end result could be the batsmen getting out.Of course,the batsmen also has a crack back at the bowler. If you believed in the saying "The end justifies the means", then my friend, it may not be applicable here. A Sport needs to be played in the right spirit to sustain the interest of the masses. Whatever i read in the newspaper, was funny as I was the third person, and i didn't visualize it in front of my eyes. In visual, it does appear as if something wrong is happening on the field, even if it is just plain chatter.In short, it goes down in a bad taste, no matter which team you are supporting.

Sometimes, it does get pretty ugly as was witnessed in the recently concluded Sydney test, which ended with serious charges of Racism against Bhajji(Harbhajan Singh). Australia, known as the world capital of Sledging, are usually the ones involved in the sledges. It goes on that they cannot take it themselves when given back.Of course this does not undermine the great talent and champion spirit they possess.

But the point is, the game does go into a different mode, when sledging takes place. Players get charged up, the environment becomes more hostile, the crowd gets into the act with their boos and yays, the media gets into overdrive condemning the verbal assault, and ultimately a good competitive sport may go on the downhill. It does manage to entertain the viewers, but is it good for the sport in the long run? Lets have it from you, my friends.