Toxic external force will hurt Test cricket eventually

INDIA’S most prominent cricket voice has turned on his colleagues, warning there are consequences to their “toxic” interference.

Keeping their friends close.

IT IS being described as a series that has reinvigorated Test cricket, but appearances can be deceiving.

Australia and India’s enthralling and fiery battles on the sub-continent are threatening to get out of hand ahead of the fourth Test in Dharamsala, beginning Saturday.

Indian cricket commentator Harshe Bhogle has hit out at the glorification that aggression and division has received from cricket commentators this series.

He has called for restraint from both camps and external forces that have fanned the flames of tension.

He said cricket’s reputation is the thing that will eventually get burnt by the external forces pouring fuel on the fire.

It comes as Test cricket legends, including VVS Laxman, Ian Healy and Mitchell Johnson, have all declared their concern with the behaviour of individual players this series.

Captains Virat Kohli and Steve Smith have been lightning rods for criticism and allegations following Smith’s second Test review “brain fade” and Kohli’s aggressive remonstrations with umpires and Australian players.

There are heroes and villains on both sides.

Bhogle says the salacious friction between the two teams and commentators on both sides of the fence will eventually prove harmful to the game if the commentators screaming for blood are not silenced.

He said cricket commentators and reporters have all been guilty of taking sides.

In a series of tweets, Bhogle called for perspective from those outside the Australian and Indian dressing rooms.

Friends in Australia tell me they are perturbed by the toxicity this series has generated. Cricket lovers in India saying so too.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 21, 2017

If we have to use toxicity and divisiveness to spread our game, we are using a short-term approach that can only be harmful.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 21, 2017

I am particularly perturbed by the fact that some of us in the media are promoting this divisiveness and taking sides to spread ill-will.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 21, 2017

A lot of us entered this profession because we love sport and had the opportunity to talk/write about it. We didn't enter to spread toxicity

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 21, 2017

Creating a Big Brother/Big Boss kind of toxicity to gain eyeballs and generate headlines will prove harmful eventually.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 21, 2017

The former ABC Grandstand commentator says it is the job of the International Cricket Council, Cricket Australia and the Board Of Control For Cricket in India to pull the series out of the darkness.

While Bhogle was calling for calm, the mud-slinging across the two camps continued on Wednesday as Aussie Test great Geoff Lawson labelled Kohli’s actions this series unbecoming for an Indian skipper.

An entire country on his shoulders.

“Well Virat’s consistent. You’ve got to give him that, he’s consistent,” Lawson told Fox Sports News’ Tomorrow’s News Tonight.

“As a leader and as a captain of a cricket team where you’ve got lots of responsibilities, you’ve got to show more gravitas and responsibility than this. These sorts of actions are those of your worst behaved player.

“Send-offs are supposed to be against the code of conduct and he was certainly caught on camera using some bad language in the second Test match. I’m surprised he didn’t get reported. But he must be treading a really fine line with the umpires and match referees because you’re not supposed to give players send-offs.

“And his language has been pretty much unacceptable. And for a captain to then carry out a press conference and then just show so little diplomacy. But he’s a great. great player. He’s one of the best players going around, but you’ve got to behave as a captain better than that.”

Kohli lost plenty of fans in Australia when he accused Steve Smith and his teammates of cheating in the second Test by looking to the dressing room for guidance on whether to challenge umpiring decisions.

Cricket Australia staunchly defended the Australian leader and CEO James Sutherland gave Kohli a clip on Adelaide radio on Wednesday when asked whether he wanted Kohli to apologise for the remarks.

“I’m not sure he knows how to spell the word (sorry),” Sutherland said on FIVEaa.

Originally published as Toxic external force will hurt Test cricket eventually