Aussies protest at gnome jibe to Langer on Cricinfo

[King Tendulkar]

MELBOURNE, Jan 4: An online commentary joke which referred opener Justin Langer as a 'gnome' has prompted Cricket Australia to lambasting a popular cricket portal for their "juvenile and infantile approach" to covering the game. Cricinfo, the most popular cricket website, in its ball-by-ball commentary yesterday said Langer would have been in "gnome-man's land" after he dropped a catch off England's Paul Collingwood in the first over of the second day of the fifth Ashes Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The portal further said, a reader pondered whether Langer would be a "metro-gnome" if he bowled like team-mate Glenn McGrath and then requested for "gnome-more jokes though, please". CA slammed the commentary as juvenile, disrespectful and sought a response from the website. "This continues to demonstrate their juvenile and infantile approach to covering cricket, and it is disrespectful in the extreme," said CA spokesperson Peter Young. "If they wanted to be taken more seriously, then they need to reflect on how they approach things," he added. The website's commentary of this match is being produced from London and its Australasian editor Peter English said there was no offence intended in the commentary. "We didn't mean any offence to Justin Langer. He has been a wonderful player for Australia and we have really enjoyed watching him throughout his distinguished career," English said in a statement. "Our ball-by-ball commentary is often light-hearted, and full of banter and jokes most of them are about ourselves. We regret this has deflected some of the attention from Justin Langer in his final Test," he was quoted as saying by the Australian Associated Press. Young said CA was satisfied with the response, and prepared to "move on" after Cricinfo also agreed to remove a link to a newspaper article in which Langer was described as "brown nose gnome" in February 2004 during a domestic one-day match between Western Australia and Queensland. The joke, three years ago, had cost an online commentator his accreditation pass and job creating a major rift between CA and Wisden's online service. The commentary was later removed and Wisden later offered an apology to Langer.

[Predator_05]

Re: Aussies protest at gnome jibe to Langer on Cricinfo I wonder what they would make of one of their players being called a drag-queen.

[Lurker]

Re: Aussies protest at gnome jibe to Langer on Cricinfo

I wonder what they would make of one of their players being called a drag-queen.

True that. Add to it "eccentric" as Sreesanth seems to be referred to these days on cricinfo. It is one thing to refer someone, let alone a player representing his country, as a "character" than to call him "eccentric". xxxx

[King Tendulkar]

Re: Aussies protest at gnome jibe to Langer on Cricinfo He is not eccentric just totally nuts :hic: