Telford Vice, one of the most revered cricket writers of South Africa, has taken issue with Bangladesh’s star all-rounder Shakib al Hasan for saying neutral umpires in Tests must be reinstated following the umpiring debacles in the first Test between Bangladesh and South Africa. Dhaka Tribune's Syed Faiz Ahmed begs to differ.
Dear Mr. Telford Vice:
I am a petty sports writer from the global South. I hail from a country which has been ravaged by colonialism and is still paying the hefty bill.
Please understand that I am a great fan of your writings, which let us know the history of South African cricket, a very interesting chapter in the annals of sports history.
I only wish to share with you the point of view, which you might have missed, that perhaps may be comprehended only by those who have been on the wrong side of history.
The national game of colonial England was a major tool of oppressing its subjects and distracting them.
Even great cricket lovers like CLR James and Mike Marqusee have suggested that the game has served as a great weapon to subdue the crowd and groom people to unquestioned faith in authority.
However, like many other things on Earth, cricket metamorphosed and became a great spirit of emancipation.
Like the South Asians and West Indians, South African black people also used the game as a source of unification in their pursuit of freedom.
Sorry for the redundancy as you must know these things much better than me.
But it is also impossible sometimes to know the feelings of people on the other side unless you hear them.
Fortunately, cricket has become a global phenomenon.
And like every other global phenomenon, cricket has been changed by going global.
As eminent sociologist Ashis Nandy said in "Tao of Cricket," in India cricket has become a ram-leela, a colourful joyous festival.
Unlike the Victorian style, people in this part of the world, like their West Indian counterparts, enjoy the game like a carnival.
This mindset helped the naissance of limited over cricket and helped the game survive and thrive.
Not only that, there are two things which must be mentioned.
Oppressed people have learned that authority must be challenged and that transgression is often the first step of breaching an unfair system.
The second thing is that we have learned that the hegemony of any single class must not be allowed.
None other than Madiba, the late great Nelson Mandela, taught us that questioning the status quo and dissenting is vital.
Justice is important, not the order of authority.
In cricket, neither the hegemony of umpires nor of any other group can be tolerated.
This is how cricket saw incredible changes like third umpires and the inception of the umpire review system, which are the complete antithesis of the game’s Victorian roots, but perfect tools to ensure justice.
In your well-articulated write up you suggested that Mr. Erasmus is an amicable man with a brilliant track record. No doubt he is.
Your central argument was that his errors should not only be overlooked, but that Shakib’s demand for a neutral umpire is akin to defamation and that he owes the umpire an apology.
I cannot agree.
Justice is the currency of today’s globalized world.
People nurture historic hegemony unintentionally, hence any mistake must not be overlooked.
In matters of justice and legitimately questioning authority there can be no compromise.
I have been a great fan of the West Indies cricket team from my childhood and my favourite cricket picture is of Michael Holding uprooting the stumps with a furious kick, showing dissent to poor umpiring.
Even the crème-de-la-crème like Erasmus and Shakib should not be spared due to their track record, as justice is paramount.
Indeed, the more august the person, the more crucial it is to hold their mistakes to account.
Shakib’s advice to reinstate neutral umpires is simply practical common sense.
It is not an attack on Erasmus or any umpire. Indeed, it is to their benefit that simple errors not be subject to suspicions of bias, implicit or otherwise. That is why we moved to neutral umpires in the first place.
That is the most important part of this discussion.
Shakib does not owe an apology for stating correct facts.
Endnote: In our culture, authority may be questioned but the esteem of a teacher is optimum.
As an aspiring sports writer I owe you a lot and acknowledge you as a maestro.
I continue to hold you in high esteem and hope this letter won’t give you a bitter feeling.
