The sun reflecting off the striking white uniforms, the gentle sound of leather against willow, and the lovingly prepared picnics brought along by the crowd – cricket has always seemed to be a very pleasant, civilized sport. Maybe it’s the game play, which is slower (or at least lengthier) than that of most other games, or maybe it’s just the calming atmosphere of the oval, but you wouldn’t expect a cricket match to ever descend into rowdiness.

Even the traditions surrounding cricket have something surprisingly pleasant about them – before the match, the two opposing captains toss a coin to see who bats or bowls first. This air of politeness pervades the game - batsmen are not ‘relegated’ or ‘sent off’, they are ‘dismissed’. Generally speaking, there seems to be something about cricket that just reeks of manners.

It seems strange then, that such a polite and pleasant sport should be able to cause such disputes on a national level. In terms of relationships between countries, cricket has been known in the past to cause quite a stir (and on a grander level, it would seem, than that of fans getting a bit too rowdy when visiting away games).

The first major occasion in which the influence of cricket was really seen was that of the Basil D’Oliveira affair. D’Oliveira is a retired South African cricketer who, classified as ‘coloured’ as a result of apartheid, was barred from first-class cricket. In 1960 he emigrated to England, and by 1966 was selected for the English national team. He proved to be a highly skilled all-rounder, so naturally it came as a shock when he was left out of the touring party for the 1968-1969 Test series in South Africa. It emerged that South African cricket officials had put pressure on the leaders of the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) to exclude D’Oliveira from the touring party. However, when Tom Cartwright was ruled out because of injury D’Oliveira was called up, resulting in the cancellation of the Test by South African officials. Many believe it was this affair that led to the banning of South Africa from sporting events.

The influence of cricket upon international relations can also be seen in the effects of the ‘bodyline’ tactic used by the English team during the 1932-33 Ashes tour of Australia. This tactic was developed by the English team to deal with the formidable batting skill of Australia’s Don Bradman, and involved the deliberate aiming of the ball at the body of the batsman in the hope of causing leg-side deflections that could be easily caught by fielders. The use of ‘bodyline’ bowling caused much ill feeling between the two teams, and the Laws of Cricket had to be changed to prevent the tactic being used again.

With cricket’s formidable (yet somewhat unexpected) influence over international relations, it is hardly surprising that it’s still so popular. Bets are already being taken for the 2009 Ashes, with Australia favoured to win (odds at 8/15 vs. England’s 9/4). A nail-biting series awaits!

Sports Betting Odds provided by www.bluesq.com

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