India-Australia Cricket Controversy - Move On Please!

So, India has flexed its financial muscle to downgrade Harbhajan's ban to 50% fine for the Sydney Test match. While bringing down an initial 3 test match ban to 50% fine for a match and nothing more is quite a huge climbdown by the ICC, as an Indian I just want to ask the cringing and whining Aussie players and media - "We are the cricket superpower. Now what?"

Honestly, there isn't much the Aussies can do than accept the verdict and behave in a more civilised manner. Without going into the stump cam transcript, fact of the matter is, unfortunately, India can flex its financial muscle and get away with it. Of course, it is not for the good of the game. But, it was high time Australia realised they can't get away with everything.

Racism as a word has been so often used in the past month that one needs to introspect what it actually means. To be frank, an Indian calling an Aussie white can also be termed racist. So, Indians are not that innocent either. It is just that India has never come out openly, and never the BCCI, in such strong defense of its players. And one also needs to take into account the track record of one Mr. Ponting before Mike Procter blindly accepted whatever Ponting, Clarke, Symonds and Hayden blurted out. Ponting has had disciplinary issues of his own, forget Harbhajan's.

Australians would be foolish to taunt the Indians on the field at MCG or at the other ODI venues in the triangular series. For if the reception turns hostile at Australia, God help the Aussies when they come to a cricket mad India later this year. This is where common sense should prevail. As an Indian, it is impossible to control the antics of an Australian fan at a ground in Australia. Similarly, it would be impossible for an Australian to stop the antics of an Indian fan at an Indian cricket ground. In fact, there will be absolutely no surprise if both these events happen. How on earth is it possible to ask every fan at a cricket ground to behave properly? And how many of the spectators can be removed from a ground or for that matter monitored in order to bring down racist taunts?

Just like the word Monkey can be such a serious racist slur, God knows what bastard can mean to an Indian? Brad Hogg was let off the hook by the Indians. I would say, Harbhajan should not have been penalised at all. But the Australians are now becoming cry babies. Losing at Perth was probably hurting them so much; they wanted something back to be still called the World Champions.

If Symonds feels Monkey is a racist slur against him, then the other 10 Australian players also will have something which they might consider racist. Should the competing teams be handed over a list of words which they should NOT be calling each other? And should this list be also provided to all the spectators in the ground? Maybe announcements such as "Dear spectators, please do not make monkey like gestures which might be a racist offense for the opposition" be made at a cricket ground? Pray, how much can anyone on earth control the behaviour of spectators on the ground? The best solution would be to just forget this incident, and play the game.

Australia seem to be becoming the cry babies of the world. Understandable, since their firm grip on the game is rapidly slipping as are the retirements of half of their once invincible team. In a span of one year, they have lost the services of Damien Martyn, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Justin Langer and now Adam Gilchrist. Clearly, a sign of change. Australia will continue to be the team to beat. But never again, the unbeatable one.