I read with dismay that the new Indian Premier League has been a great success. This involves a new version of cricket which was invented in England a few years ago and which only lasts of a couple of hours, like football or rugby or something like that and which has now taken over the cricketing world being played by teams called the Kolkatta Knight Riders. Don't these people know that cricket isn't supposed to be about entertainment? It is supposed to be the supreme test of sporting endurance – for the spectator. Frankly people who want a match that takes less than a working week to conclude are nothing short of soft.
And the old standards of gentlemanly conduct have long been in decline. Long gone are the days when the new batsman would be applauded to the wicket by the opposing team. I well remember attending my first Test Match as a boy. England were being led by Walter Hiscock.
As he came out to bat, the captain of the visiting Australians, Roger Pink, gave Hiscock a cheery wave from mid-off, setting the tone for the match. Later, when Hiscock got his fifty, the bowler Alf Long took Hiscock by the hand and gave his customary firm shake.
When the England skipper got out next ball (I can still hear the radio commentary as if it were yesterday “Hiscock is out!) there was no gloating from the Australians who cheerfully applauded their adversary from the field. Oh for the days of Hiscock, Long and Pink!
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