Alas there was rest and so there was peace – these words might sound an end of the world war, or like US moving out of Baghdad, but its not so, I am talking about the great Indian Bhajji’s controversy. Ever since the Indian team was supposed to visit for the much hyped Down Under tour of Australia, we have witnessed unfolding of one of the most controversial era of International cricket. Symonds “a Monkey”, Bhajji “a racist” and what not? Come on guys!! We have called Symonds a monkey over millions of times more than what Bhajji might have called him, websites, TV, radios, blogs, fans and other sources have called Symonds a monkey after the controversial Sydney test.

Did Harbhajan really called Symonds a monkey? And what make us think that he had not, only because Sachin Tendulkar did not hear the word? Or is it because, the cash piled Indian Cricket board thinks that he did not say? Make no mistake, Harbhajan has been charged many times with different type of allegations and have been fined by the ICC. I am not saying that Harbhajan had said the word “Monkey”, but am trying to emphasis the point that he is not a Saint (I just read that he said Gilchrist is not a “Saint”) , in the very way he thinks that Gilchrist is not a saint. What Harbhajan said or what Symonds heard should have never come out of the cricket field. Was Ponting not capable enough to handle the matter on field than having to go to the match referee, just like a 5 year old kid going to his mom and says that his friend ate his lunch at school. Grow up guys, you represent the country, and not only cricket. Harbhajan calling Symonds a monkey, might have changed the general perception of the Australian nationals towards Indians. It won’t be a surprising fact, if one out of millions of Australian is now thinking that Indians are Racist. At the same time don’t get surprised that one out of 1.2 billion has started believing that Symonds actually is a monkey.

Are we all not descendent from monkey? At least I have read this in my early school days and this is what I have seen in all Media’s like Discoveries or History’s. What made Symonds so difficult to digest this small on-field slaughter to handle? “Slaughter” might be harsh a word that I have used, but it has almost implicated this, destroying the image of two countries in the world. Two great democratic countries, Indians believe Australians are liars, and the reverse party believes Indians are racist. Cricketing captain’s role are not limited only to represent the cricketing skills on field, with wins under their belt, but are also supposed to go off field behaviors’ bringing in harmony of the countrymen of the two nation involved. When did “Monkey” became more degrading word than “F*** your mom” which is used everyday in the cricketing field, which can be clearly heard or made out through the cricketers Lip reading. Don’t we hear from the stumps microphone the comments made on the batsman? Or has the ICC become selective deaf to hear what they want to and not hear what they don’t want to? Even if this matter was reported to ICC, they should have handled this more rationally, rather than going it off to media.

I saw Ricky Ponting lashed out by his own country media, only after he met his worst defeat at his home, by one of the youngest side of world cricket, whom he, Hayden and all his team mates, had given no chance of being successful in this tour. I still remember all the press conference given by the Australian team and its coach, where in they promise to slaughter the test match 4-0 and whitewash the ODI even badly, what happened next is history which no Australian wants to remember and no Indian wants to forget.

We need to remember that after all what matter is the game and at the same time what also matters is what the people of two cricketing nation thinks about each other. Australia is scheduled to tour India this October, and make no mistake to realize that the Australian team might have to face a Herculean task in India, not to beat the Indian team, but to tackle the Indian Public at any place they go, be it in the stadium or outside the stadium.

Team comes and go, matches comes and go, what is remembered is the result and the controversy that comes along with it, and the black saga that is surrounded with the controversy. History has not forgotten nor forgiven Chappell for his under arm bowling in the last bowl of the NZ inning, neither will historian let forget this Monkey episode, which has eroded the great indo-aussie tussle this summer.

Cricket is a gentleman’s game after-all, isn’t it??