ICC chief addresses player behaviour, ball-tampering in MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture

The head of the International Cricket Council used his invitation to the Lord's event – whose keynote speaker changes each year – to spell out his stance on player behaviour and ball-tampering as well as putting forward the governing body’s broader vision for the global game.

Addressing a tumultuous year for the sport, Richardson said: “As fans, we want our players enjoying and expressing themselves, we want to see emotion, passion and pride from players. What we don’t want is robots, lacking in personality, but equally what we don’t want is ugly behavior.

“Lately we’ve seen too much ugly on and off the field of play. As a sport we must be united, not just in our desire to protect the spirit of the game, but every single person in the game needs to commit to living that spirit and ensuring it is relevant in the 21st century continuing to make cricket a unique sporting proposition.

“Sledging that amounts to no more than personal abuse, fielders giving send-offs to batsmen who have been dismissed, unnecessary physical contact, players threatening not to play in protest against an umpire’s decision and ball-tampering; this isn’t the version of our sport that we want to project to the world.

“The public reaction, around the world, to the incidents in the recent Australia-South Africa series was an eye opener. The message was loud and clear, cheating is cheating and is not what we signed up to. As administrators we have to do our part and we have agreed to take stronger action against behavior that is unacceptable, to back our match officials more and for Boards to behave in a manner themselves that creates a culture of respect between teams. We have taken a step in the right direction.

“But the reality is, it will be the players who can safegaurd the reputation of the game with their actions on and off the field. It is the nature of the players’ personalities, their strength of character that will ultimately define the spirit of the game and what it means in the 21st Century.”

Directly addressing the issue of ball-tampering, on which the ICC has clarified its sanctions, Richardson said: “Over the last few months I’ve read comments from players requesting guidance on what is allowed in relation to the ball. Asking if they can chew gum, wear sunscreen or drink a sugary drink and to be brutally honest, I find this a little disingenuous.

“The laws are simple and straightforward – do not change the condition of the ball using an artificial substance. If you are wearing sunscreen, sucking a mint or chewing gum with the intent of using the cream or sugary saliva on the ball, you are ball-tampering.

“You may not always get caught, we are not going to stop players chewing gum or from wearing sunscreen. There are many players who have chewed gum on the field throughout their careers and never once thought to use it on the ball, but if you are caught – and we have only caught players when it is pretty obvious what they are doing – then don’t complain, saying others do it is not a defence. You are cheating.”

He added: “We are relying on everyone to showcase cricket and inspire a new generation of players and fans. Winning must obviously be the aim of any game, but not at all costs, not when it means compromising the integrity of the game.”

In a wide-ranging speech, Richardson also addressed the continued growth of women’s cricket and the spread of opportunities to watch and play the game around the world.

“It is the diversity of cricket that is so precious – different formats, different nationalities, different shapes and sizes of people playing. As a sport we can and should be making every effort to diversify even further both in terms of new markets, but perhaps even more importantly in my mind in relation to women and girls,” he said.

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