THE start of the Test match at Edgbaston saw a decision by the England camp which truly upheld the ethos of the ‘Spirit of Cricket’ as set down by the custodians of the game, the MCC.

The Australians, having named their team, were hit by a bolt of bad luck which resulted in Brad Haddin breaking a finger during warm-up. The official line dictates that once the team has been named it may not be changed. Obviously keeping wicket with a broken finger over five days would have been excruciatingly uncomfortable. The Australians therefore approached the England camp and asked for a change in personnel which was duly obliged and resulted in a debut for Graham Manou.

This very charitable England decision got me thinking about the spirit of cricket and why at times it can seem to fade into oblivion when it suits. With the ever improving quality of television broadcasting and use of technology there really is no place for players or officials to hide. Every action and decision is scrutinised to the nth degree, often providing a hero and a villain of the piece.

Take for example the number of catches that have been given second judgement to assess whether or not they have hit the ground during this series to date. The legality of a catch used to be based purely on the honesty of the players and the final decision rested with the standing umpire. Now it seems that this honesty is no longer tolerated and instead the batsman will stand his ground until an official makes their decision, the reasoning being that it is the umpire’s job.

It is not only unique to catches either. Very few batsman are prepared to walk nowadays when edging a ball behind and being caught by a close fielder. Certainly Adam Gilchrist is alone in the Australian camp of recent times for being a player renowned for ‘walking’. Does this therefore contravene the spirit of cricket or is a batsman within his rights to put the pressure on the umpire to make a decision? If he has genuinely edged the ball behind and sees the catch completed surely he must walk. At the same time it is also right that a bowler should not appeal when it is obvious that a batsman is not out. Where a player rests his faith purely in the umpire’s hands then he must accept human error as being part and parcel of a very difficult job, and accept that decisions may ‘swing in roundabouts’.

Throw into the equation the abundance of sledging that has further vulgarised the game, and at times the compliance of the ‘Spirit of Cricket’ can be questioned and instead a new debate begins - ‘win at all costs’!