How the best team in the world disgraced themselves and cricket

What a discraceful piece of journalism.

When I read Sailesh Akkaraju's sixth paragraph ("Andrew Symonds jumps up with a charge of racism... In this Test it was a clear tactic to get inside the mind of Harbhajan Singh...", I immediately referred to the list of players in the Indian cricket team for his name. Is Sailesh Akkaraju a batsmen or bowler? How could I have not noticed him on the field when I watched all five days of this exciting test match? I know he doesn't play for Australia. Maybe my memory is fading and he was one of the umpires??? No, I can't seem to find his name there either. Given that, I wonder how it is that Sailesh Akkaraju thinks he "knows" anything about the interaction between Andrew Symonds and Harbhajan Singh? I don't know what, if anything, was said. Neither does Sailesh Akkaraju, so he really shouldn't just make up his own version and write about it as if it were true.

You were beaten by a better team. The Australians did not resort to racist remarks. The Australians did not resort to time wasting. When your players are good enough to manage to turn up to bat with a left and right glove, then you can critisise. Until then work hard and lift your game. You are well off the pace.

What a breathtaking piece of bias.

I am an Australian - and I cringe in disgust at the Australian team. We just voted out our government as unrepresentative swine - how can do the same to this cricket team who masquerade in our name? A bunch of thugs and cheats.

Were all the 7 australians there who wanted to testify , heard the conversation.Even the 2 umpires were not sure of conversation, if so how could 7 australians come to Testify mate ? If Steve Waugh calls it mental disintegration and if somebody else gets under skin of aussies , they simply cant accept defeat. Dont tell me that Ponting did not know when he nicked behind to Ganguly : And Micheal Clarke's claimed catch is as dubious as Micheal Slaters catch in Mumbai (1st Test Mumbai 2001) .I agree that India is not as great a Cricket team as Australia , but we have a lot to learn from the Australian cricket team .Having said it will be better if some of the australians can come to our Yoga schools to what is real spirit. Its a sport after all , where winning and losing are part and parcel of life. You got to have the big heart to be Fair.

If u say that aussies are champions, champions means also role models, are they? .Question is : PONTING APPEALED FOR DHONI FOR A CATCH WHEN HE CLEARLY WAS HOLDING THE BALL TO THE GROUND.IN PRESS CONFERENCE HE SWEARS HE DIDNT GROUND IT!!!!!.WHEN CLARKE EDGED THE BALL TO FIRST SLIP, HE STOOD THERE WAITING TO BE GIVEN OUT.GR8.they win this match they equal world record.India scores 532 in I innings, now know what their records are in danger.Ahhh.here it comes, lets put a racial charge on their strike bowler. yes indian team is weaker than aussies generally, but not in scg not in this new year test. they played like champs, but if a team(aussies) wants to win by WHATEVER way, who can stop them? even incidently umpires were with them. Murali was racially discriminated by YOU people, whats the answer for that?Champions-STEVE WAUGH side.Unsportsmanship side-RICKY PONTING side.

Is this a wind up. Sledging on the field is one thing, but racism can not be tolerated in any sport. I didn't see the Sydney crowd making animal actions towards the Indian team. If they had no doubt Akkaruju would be running with it on the front page. What cereal box did he get his journalism degree from? What a load of mindless garbage.

Way clarke,ponting and other aussie players have started playing cricket the game has no longer can claim being a gentleman's game. The worst part is that aussies have reminded everyone that they want to win the game by hook or crook. Its time players are banned for cheating and lying rather than blindly it .

Umpiring in this match was truly disgraceful but Indians have to blame themselves as well for the contexcts in which the errors occurred. If I were an Aussie I would consider myself extremely lucky and would have the grace to lie low at the moment. It's granted that Ponting's team play hard but as a neutral person I am not sure they play fair cricket!

aussie cricket team - australian for CHEATERS

I'm not saying the Australian team is perfect. Both sides waited for decisions on catches taken in the slips cordon. The umpiring was disgraceful and certainly the Australian team were on the better side of the decisions. As for Ponting's catch - the rule says that the ball has to be controlled by the fielder - after that he can do what he likes - including ground the ball. Did Ponting control the ball before he grounded it? I don't know. That is why the decisions should be left to the umpires. I hope that this game is remembered for the good things - Tendulkar's century was one of his best ever and I feel priveleged to have watched it. Harbhajan Singh's enthusiasm - batting and bowling - is fantastic and excellent for the game. Let's not focus on bad umpiring or what may or may not have been said on the field.

Now, now - nobody dare question the Aussies. They are the unquestioned gentlemen cricketers of the game. They always play in the spirit of the game - don't they folks? Getting opponents out on no-balls, appealing for grassed catches, nicking and standing their ground, eye-balling umpires into submission. Great Aussie traits these. They really did deserve to win this - didn't they. I mean there was no way they were going to lose this game with 8 decisions going in their favor :) This Aussie team is a great role model for Aussie youngsters. They've shown just how the game should be played with this match. Did anyone see M. Clarke edging one to first slip and standing his ground. Hmm - expecting a late Christmas present from Mr. Bucknor - was he? Hard to blame him, with all the presents being offered to Hussey and Symmo. Losing is one thing. Getting robbed is altogether different. Everyone knows the Aussies are the best team in the world - no doubts abt that. They might yet win the remaining 2 test

I was present at the SCG and was in awe of both the teams performances. The Little Master scoring his century, seeing the current no.1 rated Allrounder Symonds playing great cricket and watching the pace of Lee were all great moments. People are forgetting about the incredible standard of play and concentrating on this particular incident. To see such greats on the field playing at their peak is magnificent to watch. Let the players sort out their own problems, they are grown men!

I cry today for being an aussie, we really won the most shameful victory ever.. yes we won coz o we played 14 players , (3 umpires included)... Indians were better in every deptt of the game against aussies, and they should have won... but ricky and ponting and symonds are cheat, they have let the whole of australia down... Aussies are not champions, i doubt match fixing here and I even doiubt , whether they ever won a game...i think all matches they play are fixed by umpires for them..

After India, Australia used to be my favorite team and i would support aussies against non-indian teams. But after this test match, never again. AUSSIES ARE CHEATS. THEY HAVE BROUGHT THIS GAME INTO DISREPUTE AND I WONT WATCH THEM EVER AGAIN.

you are right about the umpiring..it was a disgrace, but you are wrong in your conclusions..the indians have only themselves to blame, look at dhoni's absurd second innings shot in the circumstances

oh give me a break! if Kumble was in the same position as Ponting with a possible 16 Test Victories in a row dont you think he might have been just as ruthless and singleminded in pursuit of this record? And as for: Andrew Symonds jumps up with a charge of racism at so many instances he reminds me of an American lawyer rather than one of the best cricketers in the world. Considering the behaviour of Indian crowds towards Symonds of late is it any wonder? Cheating and lying? I seem to remember Sunny Gavaskar doing the bluff a few times when he was called out- hesitating and not moving until called out

Who the hell is this journo? Absolute biased crap. What did the Aussies do that was unsportmanlike? I found one 2 instances of poor behaviour. One was Harbarjan's racial taunt and the other was blatant time wasting by Sharma bringing out 2 right gloves when going out to bat. He's kidding. Sounds like someone was possibly cheating there and it certainly wasn't an Aussie. Almost no-one walks, hardly anyone in history of cricket has. If the roles were reversed and the batsman got a bad decision would you recall them. Of course not. again talking crap. As for the umpire, Symonds was out, Tendulkar was clearly LBW at 37, Laxman clearly LBW at 16,both of those would have knocked 2 stumps out of the ground, Hussey LBW at 40, Lee clearly not out when on 59, Dravid clearly not out. The only legitimate century out there was Hayden's. If India want to whinge like girls then first look at both sides of the argument. If the umpires got every thing right the Test would've ended in two days. As for this journo, he can join

For those Aussies arguing that Indians are "sore loosers" - believe me, we are quite "used" to loosing (nothing we are proud of - just facts of the matter that we are not the best team around). And when our team has played badly - the public doesn't mince words for them either (remember what happened after India lost the initial matches of the 2003 World Cup OR when they came back after the first round of the 2007 one ?). But today the whole nation is one in feeling cheated by the umpires and disappointed by the in-the-face unsporting behaviour and double-standards of the Aussies. If you still have any doubts -- consider this -- ever expected a person of Kumble's nature to come out and say "only one team played in the spirit of the game" ? The whole nation feels with him.... Just hoping now the BCCI has the back-bone to take it up strongly on both counts....

The umpiring was bad. Bad calls were made both ways, why not the disgust for ponting being given out in the first innings caught when the ball never touched his bat. How can Kumble complin that the Australians never walked, did he not see what his own batsmen did. Ganguly should be lucky not to be charged with disent. Perhaps the most ridiculus, embarrassing episode was the sight of India trying to hold a draw with a "wardrobe mixup". I do not see how any team that could stoop to that level could have the gaul to comment on another sides sportsmanship.

Right - delaying tactics are unsporting - but standing your ground after having edged (even for the healthy ones) to first slip, appealing for catches after grounding it, swearing at your opponents etc are "fair game" ?? Guess what - two can play at the game.... Indians may be new to those Aussie tricks - and I hope they don't stoop as low as the Aussies did in this match - but I do hope they continue to give them some of their own medicine back, get under their skin and keep exposing how low the Aussies are willing to stoop..... Nobody denies Aus is the better team here - but as Sailesh originally wrote - they can hardly be held up as champions and role-models anymore.

Its no doubt that wat happened at the scg only brought disgrace to the game and the australians are to be blamed alongwith the umpires. bucknor should have been the mom and not symonds. and one more thing with this verdict of bhajji coming against him, this series is now going to get more bitter. all in all a gr8 piece of writing my dear fren.