After a number of the ugliest scenes in Ashes historical past unfolded at Lord’s through the Second Ashes Test, one commentator says it might be a “horrible shame” if it meant the lack of one of many extra distinctive athlete-fan interactions in world sport.
News Corp’s Lauren Wood, talking on Fox Sports’ The Back Page, stated the Long Room at Lord’s was distinctive, and hoped it might keep.
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“The shame in this scenario is all we‘re seeing across the globe is more distance between athletes and fans,” Wood stated.
“We’ve got tunnels at tennis tournaments – all we’ve got is security guards.
“This is so unique and it‘s so iconic to the Lord’s ground – wouldn’t it be a horrible shame if this was the end of this iconic scenario?”
It comes after Australian gamers had been jostled, allegedly tripped and abused by MCC members as they made their approach up via pavilion on the finish of the primary session on the fifth day of the second Test, furious on the controversial dismissal of England’s Jonny Bairstow.
Bairstow had watched a Cameron Green supply sail behind him into the gloves of Alex Carey and commenced to stroll down the pitch pondering the ball was lifeless.
But Carey threw down the stumps and Bairstow was given out, sparking a livid response from the England gamers and crowd.
Co-host Robbie Slater stated the homogenous crowd might have contributed to the tribal environment.
“It didn‘t look like 2023,” he stated of the traditionalist MCC.
“It just looked like a bunch of old guys. Didn’t see many females. I thought watching it, it was very embarrassing.”
News Corp’s Robert Craddock famous that the MCC solely not too long ago allowed girls to be a part of the membership in 1999.
“The only female allowed in the Long Room during play before 1999 was Queen Elizabeth,” Craddock stated, dripping with sarcasm.
“How gracious of them. Wasn‘t that a lovely gesture?”
The MCC remains dominated by men, with only 217 of the 18,000-strong full membership currently being women.
Long Room during the second Test became a cauldron of abuse as the Australian players made their way back to their dressing room.
Cries of “cheat”, “sandpaper” and “shame on you” echoed throughout and followed the players up the stairs, but the most jarring images came during the broadcast when Usman Khawaja, who was born in Pakistan and is Muslim, stopped dead in his tracks in front of MCC members on two occasions.
Australian cricket great Ricky Ponting described Khawaja as “probably the nicest man that’s ever walked the planet,” which is why these pictures of him confronting the members was so startling.
Khawaja was even reportedly heard saying to a steward: “Make sure you get him kicked out specifically. Him and him.”
The Aussie opener instructed Channel 9 after the ultimate day’s play: “Some of the stuff that was coming out of members’ mouths was really disappointing, and I wasn’t just going to stand by and cop it.”
The Third Test will get underway at Headingley at 8pm AEST on July 6.
Source: www.news.com.au
