On a train to Nottingham for Day 2 of the fourth Test in the 2015 Ashes, I knew Michael Clarke’s Australian team was bracing for a day of ceaseless taunting.
The day before, they’d been famously rolled for 60 as Stuart Broad single-handedly wrestled the urn back into English hands. Australia, down 2-1 going into the Trent Bridge test, had effectively lost the series in a session, and the home fans were giddy in the party atmosphere.
And rightly so. This was payback time, for the many who had lived through loss after loss in the 90s.
Not content to laud it over the Aussie side, the packed house had one target in mind: Mitchell Johnson. Sitting at fine leg at the Radcliffe Road End, I saw Johnson receive a relentless array of abuse from the well-lubricated crowd.
At one stage, after the umpteenth sledge, he turned and looked utterly crestfallen, no resolve left, wanting to get out of there. And fast. He went for almost five-an-over that innings, recording 1-102 off 21 overs, all to a ceaseless tune sang ad nauseam: “He bowls to the left, he bowls to the right, that Mitchell Johnson, his bowling is…”, well, you know the rest.
Mitchell Johnson. (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
Far be it for Australians to criticise the English for crowd abuse. Our own stadiums are similarly over-represented by over-entitled idiots, too, who save their most inexcusable torment for an Ashes series. But the abuse in the UK is different.
For one, Australia’s stadia is much bigger than the close-in, tight English grounds. But more importantly, the UK crowd taunts are particularly targeted. “They pick Australian players to target,” Mitchell Johnson wrote in The West Australian earlier this year.
“The Barmy Army might call it friendly banter but when it’s day in and day out it can and does have an impact on players. I’ve been walking around with my wife and daughter and copped abuse.”
Johnson’s well-reported struggles with constant torment brings into light what awaits Steve Smith and David Warner this year. For five straight months the pair will ply their trade in a hostile environment, scrutinised by a hungry press pack who smell blood.
How the duo deal with endless cheating and sandpaper jibes will likely determine their – and perhaps, Australia’s – chances in the World Cup and the Ashes. But different characters respond to adversity in different ways. And there’s little question as to which of the two remains more vulnerable to months of ceaseless taunting.
“Smith”, cricket journalist Robert Craddock responded without hesitation when asked the question of who he is more concerned about. “Warner’s been in the rough-and-tumble all his life. You knock him down, he gets up again. He’s used to it, he shakes himself off. Smith was knocking at Bradman’s door, and suddenly spent a year in solitary confinement and has found it really hard. That’s as big a comedown we’ve seen from any Australian cricketer.”
Steve Smith reacts during a press conference. (AAP Image/Brendan Esposito)
The abuse Johnson received is likely to pale in comparison to what the pair can expect. Johnson, you see, was that target for no other reason than previous success against England.
Sure, he pushed buttons with his fiery nature and stare-downs, but that was also theatre, far from the worst sporting crime. Smith and Warner, on the other hand, have actually committed a genuine sporting crime.
There will be an element of payback from the 2017-18 Ashes, too. Then, Cricket Australia promoted a grating #BeatEngland hashtag throughout the summer that showed a lack of class.
They were utterly graceless in unveiling a ‘4-nil’ hand sign at the conclusion of the series (something still referenced, justifiably, by English cricket scribes), and smug in the way it dealt with a strange bar incident involving Jonny Bairstow.
And whether they like it or not, the revenge will be sought through a mental disintegration of Smith and Warner. If the press and crowds sense vulnerability in the former captain, that will only ensure they push even harder.
Speaking at the recent Sheffield Shield final, Andrew Symonds said it was important the pair were prepared: “What they are going to get over there is they’ll be savagely treated by the English media, by the English fans and the Barmy Army,” he said.
“They’re going to cop it in the ears. They’ve got to block that out and they’ve got to be ready to play their best cricket as soon as they get on the field.”
Justin Langer said this week they would be “really well prepared for that” and that they’ll “have strategies” to deal with it. But nothing is likely to prepare the pair for what they’ll face for five months straight in the UK.
Whether Smith can play his natural game in the face of it is perhaps the biggest challenge of his career to date.
George
Guest
See also: being an utter bogan like The Hayden Way.
George
Guest
To think Teflon scored another CA job after his boorish mismanagement of the national side.
George
Guest
You mean like Michael Clarke did on 4 separate occasions v England and India in 2010/11? When a non-Aussie does it, it's branded cheating.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Yes Peter, you're spot on. Detection is the big problem. At the moment it's entirely up to the broadcasters and apparently they tend to concentrate on the visitors and ignore what the home team is doing. To a simple country hick like myself the solution seems so bleeding obvious it's a complete no-brainer. The ICC should have its own cameras in place to pick up any infringements but apparently that's too hard to do and I'm being naive.
Pumping Dougie
Roar Guru
Except, Darren Lehman branded him a cheat publicly. And if its good enough for Lehman ...
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
With all due respect JN, I can’t understand what you’re saying either. The ICC doesn’t pay your players, you guys do. If your board decides that it wants to continue paying a player while he’s banned that’s up to them. Pay isn’t the issue here. Stamping out ball tampering is the issue and I just can’t see how what you’re saying is relevant to that. The ICC has nothing to do with whether you pay your players or not.
Peter Warrington
Guest
Eureka. I tried to get the smh and guardian tribes discussing deterrence with no success What you are referring to to is the detection aspect of enforcement. Like a lot of traffic offences, tampering is hard to detect Many deterrence theories identify three interlinked factors that collectively boost compliance - likelihood of being caught - swiftness is punishment - magnitude of punishment With the first being very low, Australia went real hard on 2 and 3. It has probably deterred many players from noncompliance. Now that has been done, the emphasis should be on increasing the likelihood of getting caught I.e. detection. Imputes inspectkng the ball after every ball is the ultimate. All material on field approved by umps etc Think about the speed detection framework. Penalties are Lo wish because it is more likely you will get caught. Cameras and inspections etc. independent and not linked to a home broadcaster. Right on! With enforcement being only one if th
Derek Murray
Roar Rookie
These two are our only world class batsmen (Maxwell in white ball). Maybe Smith shares a start or two with Marsh to see if he gets the gig at the WC but they both come straight into the side for the Ashes.
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
While I appreciate your response I am not fully understanding it. But maybe that’s just me. In South Africa there can be no such thing as surrogate international labour law. If the penalty is deemed overly harsh and unjust it doesn’t matter. Cricketers are registered tax paying workers. Why should they be anything else. I am simply saying that the ICC treads a fine line and gets a lousy press from those who do not understand their limitations.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
@ badmanners: Just read it. Wow. What a freaking mess. The only positive thing I can say about all that is that it reinforces my opinion that Sid Monga is the greatest cricket journalist the world has ever seen. Other than that it’s a train wreck.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Gee whiz mate, this is something I hadn't considered at all. The first thing is I'm so eminently unqualified to voice an opinion it's just not funny so, in true Aussie spirit, I won't let that stop me in the least. Ok then. Well. Umm. .. I think that if you play under the auspices of the ICC you void your right to the local rules and cede control to the international body. As a poor analogy, if I was working in South Africa and got suspended for misconduct under SA rules, I couldn't expect to invoke Aus rules to get reinstated. As soon as I left Aus jurisdiction all of my normal local laws would be void. I reckon it would be a similar situation with international sport. .. as an aside, do you have central contracts in SA? With the Warner/Smith thing, CA decided to tear up their contracts but CSA could just as easily elect to keep paying your players even if they had been rubbed out by the ICC and weren't actually playing.
badmanners
Roar Rookie
I've posted this link before but well worth a read; http://www.espncricinfo.com/story/_/id/23021555/do-broadcasters-do-ball-tampering
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
OK dungerBob, let's look at it from another angle. Firstly I agree that existing punishments are too lenient. But....The ICC represents all member countries. Let me take my own SA as an example.... Should the ban be extremely harsh the cricketer has the option to take the ICC to labour court. If for example the 3 Aussies were South African and the same sentences imposed and the 3 took the ICC to court the financial implications not just for loss of income but also potential loss of future income, the payouts would be massive. SA courts hugely favor the worker over management. In other words the ICC has to factor in local law of its members as well as police the game. No coincidence that CEO Dave Richardson not just an ex cricketer but also an attorney.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Thank you sir, much appreciated.
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
Wasn't he in the slips when Quinton de Kock was batting. That day.
Joshua Kerr
Roar Guru
Whenever England win anything, there is always a parade!
Joshua Kerr
Roar Guru
I'm a Pom and didn't feel that the giant hands were in bad taste, just a reflection of how dominant the Aussies were in that series! There was an English finger ready just in case they did win the test in Sydney so it would have happened regardless whether Australia won the series 4-0 or 3-1.
Insult_2_Injury
Roar Rookie
There's already rules and laws in place for vilification.
Insult_2_Injury
Roar Rookie
Now you're talking about 'the line', which is different for everyone. Personally I see no need for personal abuse or the abhorrent rubbish the South African crowd aimed at Warner - and worse - his wife, but censorship is a slippery slope.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
That's very interesting Chris. I was not aware of that. .. I wonder if there is any merit in the idea of the ICC putting a few people at strategic points around the ground and arming them with decent video cameras. If the host broadcaster is going to take care of business when the opposition is bowling the ICC guys could be given the brief of keeping an eye on the home team. Just a thought.