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Partab Ramchand14-Nov-2002In “The Wildest Tests”, Ray Robinson’s absorbing book about matchesdisrupted by riots and disturbances, Tests played in India figure veryprominently. The book, released 30 years ago, lists four matches heldin India India vs West Indies at Calcutta in 1966-67, India vsAustralia at Bombay in 1969-70, India vs New Zealand at Hyderabad in1969-70 and India vs Australia at Calcutta in 1969-70. If a secondedition of the book were to be brought out – by someone else, sinceRobinson passed away in 1982 – there is no doubt that India wouldoccupy a pre-eminent place in the listings.
Generally it is when the home side is losing or when there isdissatisfaction with a crucial umpiring decision that such unfortunateincidents occur. The same analysis can be proffered for the crowd’sdisgraceful behaviour at Jamshedpur and Nagpur, but there can be norational explanation for the behaviour of the unruly elements atRajkot.
To be sure, there have been serious riots that disrupted matches inother countries too, and Robinson himself has described in vividdetail events that led to Tests in Australia, Pakistan and the WestIndies being affected by happenings on and off the field. But Indiawill continue to figure prominently thanks to various factors thatinclude overcrowded stands, emotional attachment with the home team,an inability to accept defeat, lax security, and petty-mindedadministrators whose chief interest is the vote of the association towhich a one-day international has been allotted.Unfortunately, this is how the system works in India, and that is whymany centres that do not boast of any hoary cricketing tradition andthat lack the machinery to conduct international matches are givengames. That only puts players and spectators in discomfort, endangersthe limbs and careers of cricketers and, as events on Tuesday proved,halts the entertainment for genuine cricket-lovers at the ground andmillions of TV viewers round the world.Think of crowd disturbances and, whether one likes it not, Kolkata hasto figure very strongly in mind. The serious, almost frightening riotsthat disrupted the World Cup semifinal at the Eden Gardens in March1996 or the India-Pakistan Asian Test Championship encounter threeyears later are not events that one can erase from the mind easily. Inthe latter match, there were two riots and, as every cricket-followerknows, the denouement was unique the last rites were performedbefore an empty Eden Gardens, an eerie experience. On both occasions,India were hurtling to defeat when unruly elements took a hand,throwing missiles onto the ground and setting the stands on fire.Generally it is when the home side is losing or when there isdissatisfaction with a crucial umpiring decision that such unfortunateincidents occur. The same analysis can be proffered for the crowd’sdisgraceful behaviour at Jamshedpur and Nagpur, but there can be norational explanation for the behaviour of the unruly elements atRajkot.India were heading for victory, Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag not to mention some of the West Indian batsmen in the morning hadprovided entertainment fit for a king, and everything seemed hunkydory. Where then was the need for a section of the crowd to throwbottles and assorted missiles and run the risk of ending theentertainment prematurely, halting play and having the matchabandoned?Few can blame the West Indies team for leaving the field and refusingto continue or Mike Proctor for abandoning the match. Three times inthree matches was pushing it a bit too far; there is only so much thematch referee can take, and if he decides to send in a ratherunflattering report to the ICC, few can find fault with him.What then is the solution? It would be easy to say that venues with ahistory of crowd trouble should be banned from conductinginternational matches. But then Kolkata would probably figureuppermost in the minds of most people advocating such a radical step.Interestingly Ahmedabad, a Test centre and the venue of the fourthone-day international of the current series, has not exactly covereditself with glory in this disturbing aspect.It is a city with a history of communal trouble, and one remembers thePakistan outfielders being pelted with stones on the fourth day of theTest match in March 1987. Imran Khan rightly led his team off thefield, and following appeals for calm over the public address systemby Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev, play resumed after a break of almostan hour. The visitors injected a dose of ironic humour with six of theplayers taking the field wearing helmets.It is thus with a feeling of trepidation, rather than anticipation,that we look forward to Friday’s game. But there is little doubt thatthe administrators must take steps to control the growing menace. TheICC for its part has confirmed that it was seeking urgent confirmationfrom the BCCI concerning the adequacy of safety and security measuresin place for the remaining matches of the current series.ICC Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Speed has said that followingthree consecutive games marred by crowd unrest and disturbance, thebody was seeking reassurances about the safety of players andofficials. This is a step in the right direction, but more obviouslyneeds to be done.The ICC has been in constant touch with the BCCI after the unsavouryincidents at Jamshedpur and Nagpur and is in the process of seeking afull explanation of the Rajkot fiasco. In addition, the ICC has askedfor details of the ground stewarding and security plans for the nextfour matches. It has also asked BCCI officials to meet with Procterand brief him fully of the contingency measures.While the more radical step of boycotting the international status ofa venue has been advocated by a few, the ICC till date has neverthought along those lines. But Speed has now confirmed that this is anoption that will be considered at a meeting of ICC’s Safety andSecurity Committee. “We have asked this committee to considerappropriate penalties for venues that consistently fail to meet theirobligations in meeting minimum standards of security. This is likelyto include the ultimate sanction of withdrawing international statusfrom a ground, combined with a heavy financial penalty,” Speed isquoted to have said.Ideally, all member boards affiliated to the ICC should subscribe tothe principal that the safety and security of players and officials isparamount and that it is their responsibility to ensure thatappropriate measures are in place for all international matches. Asalready explained, this is easier said than done where the BCCI isconcerned.But now with three successive matches being affected and with the ICCtaking a firm stand on the issue, the Indian Board may have no optionbut to fall in line. Sunil Gavaskar for one has made it quite clearthat the BCCI must seriously start thinking of banning venues wherethere is crowd disturbance. Spectators who cannot accept an Indiandefeat should get no cricket whatsoever, Gavaskar, who heads the ICC’scricket committee, has said. He has also called for the BCCI toconsider fining the staging associations for not ensuring properconduct of the match.For his part, BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya, while outlining plans toinstall closed-circuit TV cameras in the stands to monitor the crowd,has also hinted that disturbance-prone venues could struggle to retaininternational status. To some, this would be a rather extreme step,then again, but three disturbances in three games calls for somedrastic action.