As we all know Cricket is a Gentleman’s game so fair play should have to be above everything in cricket. Spirit of Cricket has been given by Marylebone Cricket Club. It refers to some unwritten rules of cricket that glorify the game. Spirit of cricket is not the mandatory term but the game is expected to be followed by players. There are so many rules that may or may not be controversial so while playing the game player are expected to play not only according to the rules but keeping sportsmanship in their mind. There are many instances in history where we’ve seen the Sportsmanship and the spirit of cricket. there are players who are known for their gentlemanly behaviour on the ground for example Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni but there are some players who play only according to the laws such as Shakib Al Hasan and Ravichandran Aswin. MCC states that cricket should be played not only according to the laws but also within the spirit of cricket, so before going to the Laws of Cricket let’s dig into the important keys in the Spirit of Cricket.
Fair play
While playing the game players are expected to follow the rules and play fairly. Without going hard with another teammate play wisely and respect everyone. After this ethics of the game, the most important topic that comes under the Spirit of cricket is respect. Respecting the game is the most important ethic in this preamble.
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Respecting the Laws of Cricket
Rules are made to avoid cheating in the game so players are expected to follow the rules of the game but keep the most important thing in their mind which is Spirit and sportsmanship. Some rules are made in case of exceptions such as timeout and non-starter run out. These two rules are so controversial and they’ve been so popular these days. These rules are perfect examples of playing within the rules but not crossing the line of the main theme of the game which is gentlemanship.
We’ve seen players like Sachin Tendulkar, Adam Gilchrist, and Kumar Sangakkara who used to walk away when they were out even if the umpire didn’t agree with that, this is what respecting the rules but if a player is not doing the same is violating the Spirit of game.
Respecting the umpires
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Umpires in Cricket are the ones who act like judges in the field so if they are requesting any player to not go against the rules then a player should respect it and do what the umpire says. Sometimes it becomes subjective when the umpire makes a wrong decision and the player is aware of what he has done then the umpire becomes the one who is obstructing the rules but at that time showing anger and disrespect to the Umpires is not the right way to show your sportsmanship. Showing self-discipline even when things are going against the players is the best way to promote the Spirit of Cricket.
Nowadays there is liberty for players to go for the review if they are not satisfied with the umpire’s decision so showing aggression to the Umpires are the owners of Laws of Cricket in the fields is basically damaging the ethics of the games.
Respect your opponents
During the match, players should be aware of how the game should be played, and one of the most important key features to follow is respecting your players and making sure that you are not crossing any limits just to make them out. Sometimes layers do unethical practices to make batters out such as obstructing the way of running and false fielding, but there are some players who’ve done many great things when they could’ve gotten a wicket but they haven’t because they followed the spirit of the cricket.
One of the biggest examples in favor of the argument is when Dhoni calls back Ian Bell which is also the Spirit of Cricket incident of the decade 2010-2020.
There are some important ethics in the Spirit of Cricket.
- Respect your teammates, opponents, rules, and umpires on the field, and don’t go hard on any other person present on the field even when they are breaking the rules.
- Always play wisely and fairly if you accidentally hit another player going to him asking for apologies is not in the Laws of Cricket but it is what this game is all about.
- Accepting the decision of umpires and not going against them even if they are making the wrong decision is the biggest ethic of the game
- Always try to create a positive environment through your efforts in the game and try to show healthy competition not hard.
- Always show happiness on the other team’s win no matter how big the game was and congratulate them by shaking hands.
No doubt England is the birth country of Cricket but nowadays this game has become the game of cultures and it is the most peaceful game to be played in the world. This game merges cultures and differences from beyond the borders and ancestors who played cricketers always stated that playing with good intentions and healthy competition is what we play for.
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