Gentlemen's game is slipping: Gray

Australia's International Cricket Council chairman Malcolm Gray said on Saturday administrators needed to do more to control the behaviour of players at the top level as tennis and soccer had done.

Gray was quoted as saying in The Australian newspaper that excessive abuse or "sledging" between players and overzealous appealing to umpires to dismiss batsmen are damaging what was once revered as the gentlemen's game.

"Society's standards of behaviour have deteriorated and the other sports have recognised this and done something about it," Gray said.

"Cricket administrators have been slow on that, assumed that it's the gentlemen's game and that players will behave properly, the captain will control his players.

"People are so desperate to achieve in sport because of the rewards of it they will go to extraordinary lengths -- we need to present our game better than we have done in the past decade.

"Sledging has always been around but some of the behaviour has got out of hand a bit."

The Australian also quoted Australian Cricket Board director Jack Clarke as saying the game's reputation had suffered.

"If it becomes warfare with no morals you lose the fabric of the game," Clarke said.

"The saying 'It's just not cricket' doesn't cut the same ice it used to."

Clarke said it was unfair the way every fieldsman in the team would run to the umpire to try to pressure him into giving a batsman out.

Former Australian Test fast bowler Mike Whitney also spoke out, attacking leg-spinner Shane Warne for his involvement in the telephone sex scandal in England which cost Warne the Australian vice-captaincy last year.

"Shane should have thought to himself 'If I do this am I putting myself at risk? If so, then don't get involved'," Whitney was quoted as saying.

"But the answer was: yes."

Mail Cricket Editor