Aussie cricketers have nothing to apologise for

The world of cricket suffers from an unjustified moral superiority complex. This explains the periodic howls of outrage when a player or team is caught acting in a manner summed up by the phrase ‘it’s not cricket’ — a catch-all sentiment that purports to speak of some higher purpose than just winning.

The latest example is the overblown reaction to the Australian cricket team’s controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow when the England batsman appeared to believe the ball was not in play during the final day of the second Ashes test. Even Rishi Sunak couldn’t resist the temptation to wade in. The Prime Minister said Australia’s actions were not in the ‘spirit of cricket’ and that he agreed with Ben Stokes, the England captain, who said after the match that he would not have wanted to win the game in the manner Australia did.