Irked by the "unethical" charge levelled at Adam Gilchrist for
using a squash ball in his gloves in the World Cup final, outgoing Australian
coach John Buchanan said people should not make fuss over this "non-issue".
More than a week after the final in which Gilchrist belted a match-winning 149,
Sri Lanka Cricket secretary Kangadaran Mathivanan alleged Gilchrist's
using of the squash ball was as unethical as Trevor Chappell's infamous
under-arm delivery.
Describing it as a "disappointing" comment, Buchanan
said, "Everybody will be disappointed about this. The final should be a
celebration of cricket and Adam's innings was outstanding. Comments like these
should be ignored by the public, and be dealt with harshly as quickly as possible.
"It's a non-issue. If you want to go down this road, where
do you draw the line? Should it be illegal for players to receive strapping
to injuries, or for batsmen to use extra grips on their bats?" Buchanan
told 'The Age'.
He urged all to remember Gilchrist's inning just for its sheer
beauty and ignore everything else.
"There is an argument that there is some benefit there.
I hope that over time, people will ignore something like this and remember the
innings for how good it was." A top Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)
official has already given Gilchrist a clean chit, saying he did not do anything
wrong.
Mathivanan had also threatened to take up the matter with the
International Cricket Council, even though it turned out later that he
did not have support of his own board.
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