Pattinson should focus on bowling, not being an attack dog

Totally agree with that. Personal abuse type sledging is stupid, but talking to each other so that batsman CAN hear I've got no problem with. "He doesn't like the short ones". "He's all bottom hand hitting across the line". "He's leaving a gap between bat and pad". "He doesn't get his back foot across." Any of these plant seends in the batsman's mind. Having a go at a batsman for pulling away when you're about to deliver is just blowing off steam. No big dramas there. Smith certainly wasn't worried by it.

I'm not sure why there is so much angst around our cricket team. Maybe its the tall poppy syndrome thing in this country. Personally I loved them under Waugh and early Ponting when they were ruthless, and I am enjoying them under Clarke who has surpassed my expectations as a captain. they are getting at ruthless streak back. I get your point dasilva, but I don't really agree with all of it. If people are going to single out their own country men in a match, like this article does to Pattinson, I really suggest they have something more tangible than a general vibe they got through a television screen. I would also suggest if they want to go after an 'incident' (I hate to call it that but my english is failing me tonight) then they should also examine other 'incidents' in the same match which were far more clear cut, i.e. Smith on Cowan. The fact that neither teams have cared about whats gone on, makes articles like these all the more confusing and a bit pompous for mine.

I'll just say that the Australian public target the Australian cricket team because they are australian and they represent our country and image. Whether Smith and other countries do abusive sledging. Well that's an issue for those countries (and I guess the ICC who look after the game as a whole) to deal with. Sure we want overly abusive sledging to be gone worldwide but people are going to single out their own countrymen first because those are the people the public want to behave better the most. Although I do get your point that if you haven't heard exactly what patterson say because the mic didn't pick it up, then perhaps we shouldn't prejudge the situation

My understanding of Parore vs Waugh is as follows. M.Waugh to Parore as he came out to bat - "Didnt you come over here a few years ago ? You were shit then and youre shit now" Parore - "Yeah last time I was here werent you were with that old, ugly sl%t. And I hear now youve married her, you dumb c@nt".

Cricket is entertainment. The verbal confrontation adds to the entertainment. If players cant hack it, find another profession. Ultimately sledgers who live by the sword will die by the sword. James Pattinson will have days in test cricket when he has 0-120 and is being flogged around the park. Likewise he will have days when he himself is batting and a slip cordon with long memories will be giving him plenty of advice. Sledging in cricket is like the punch up in footy. Morally its probably wrong but we all love it.

Sorry I am just confused as to why you are being critical of a comment allegedly made by Pattinson, when you didn't actually hear the alleged comment. If you are against Sledging thats fine, but just don't go after one player, go after all. There were a few in that Test Match from both sides. Why didn't you also examine Smith's exchange to Cowan? Smith was 3rd man in. Thats much worse than a bowler having a word to a batsman. To target Pattinson just makes it seem like you have an agenda. Do you have an agenda against Pattinson? So again to summarise I am slightly confused as to what the purpose of this article is, or what thoughts on an issue you want to find out. Is it comments by Pattinson that you or no member of the public heard first hand, and which wasn't brought up by Smith? Or is it sledging in general, and if it is case you shouldn't focuse on one isolated case within a test match?

Good one Tom... you remember back in the day I am told when some bowler tried to tell Sir Viv what a cricket ball looked like. Well Viv dispatched his next ball high up into the stands, retorting: "well ye know what it looks like, now g'n fetch it" . Andrew says in one breath Smith's quite cool and then further in his article, suggests his no angel either. Exactly. Smith can be a bit of a Biff at times. He expects a lot from his team ... so he's reputation is not affected. It's a contest between bat and ball; and if the bowler wins the contest - allow him to show the batsmen into the showers. And let the batsmen let his bat do the talking. Yeah, I've seen video's of Curtley's assault on Jones .. nothing better. Of course it should not cross certain boundaries ... no personal insults and no knocking a bowler with your shoulder, (or vice versa) or rapping a bowler with your bat across the ankles as one K Wessels allegedly did to Kapil in Port Elizabeth! Warne was the best when it came to mind games .. ask one Daryll Cullinan. Steve Waugh's jibe to H Gibbs: "You've dropped the World Cup, mate." It even happened before a match ... One report goes that Geoff Boycott was taking his kit from his boot in the car park before a county match for Yorkshire, when Malcolm Marshall brushes past and remarks: "Hey Boycs, yer in for some hookin' today are you?". So he knew what was going to come later. That's cricket nothing more than a bit of grunt from a fast bowler and the response from a batsmen.

Oh man these "aggressive sledging is bad" articles come about every summer ... Nothing wrong with a bit of fast bowling aggression Andrew. Yeah sure it can be a bit silly carrying on about a bird flying over, but ya know, fast bowlers want blood and are fired up. Fast bowling aggro is a part of Test Cricket. Do you remember when Dean Jones asked Curtly Ambrose to remove his wristbands? Bad move Deano! Great entertainment watching Curtly fire up.

Andrew, as you've very rightly pointed-out that Graeme Smith is no angel and from what I observed he was as involved in the gamesmanship/banter/sledging during the test as Pattinson or Siddle.

The microphone didn't pick up anything, so Why are you commenting on something you didn't hear?

My view on sledging is basically summarised by Sangakkara here "The public perception of sledging is to go out there and abuse someone in obscene language, questioning their parentage or sexual preferences. That kind of abuse does not belong on the field of play. Sledging, as coined and pioneered by the Australians, is a measured comment designed to get a reaction out of a player. It could be any reaction: a bit of anger, a show of arrogance, a comment, a shake of the head, or a slump of the shoulders. They could be saying something as simple as: `Let's leave a big gap there because he can't score through there.' Even if you are mentally strong and understand they are baiting you, it can still work in the mind. You might be keen to hit the ball through the gap; you might be keen to avoid it. Either way a seed has been sown. " Sledging like this I don't mind http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlFF98dM8sA I support that type of sledging as well as the one i mention about healy and warne on Atherton. However the McGrath going off swearing at players or abusing the opposition is something I absolute hated. Actually it's against the ICC code of conduct as well

There's a good story about how Mike atherton got out as a result of sledging Mike Atherton was called a selfish player and he got angry about that and he got himself dismissed trying to prove Healy wrong he wasn't selfish "The only time I can remember falling down was in my third Test when I was facing Shane Warne and Ian Healy said I was going to play for a red-inker [a not out]. My pride took over and I thought, `Sod you, I'll show you I'm not playing for a red-inker.' I bolted down the wicket and got stumped."

"Of course we don’t know what was said; the microphones didn’t pick it up. But you can read body language, facial expressions and read lips to understand the gist." So you don't know what he said or did but you are still criticizing him..... Jeez I just wish someone would think of the children!

There-in lies the problem. I watched the test match (as much as I could around work commitments and the 2-hour nightly highlights on Fox Sports) not just the knee-jerk media beat-up.