Should stump microphones be turned down so TV viewers cannot hear sledging?

[Abdullah719]

Stump microphones should be turned down so television viewers cannot hear the sledging which occurs on the field, says England head coach Trevor Bayliss.

England closed a rain-shortened second day of the second Ashes Test on 29-1, 413 adrift of Australia.

Bayliss said he did not think it was "a great thing for young kids watching at home" to hear the sledging.

"It adds to the spectacle when you're playing but I don't think anybody has to listen to everything," he added.

"I'd like to see the stump microphones turned down.

"It's grown men playing a very competitive sport and sometimes those emotions boil over."

Both teams have tried to undermine their opponents on the field in a fractious contest, with England noticeably keen to engage Australia captain Steve Smith in some heated exchanges when he batted on day one in Adelaide.

A similar pattern continued on day two when Stuart Broad roared in the direction of Peter Handscomb after trapping the batsman lbw for 36.

Bayliss, however, believes such incidents are often blown out of proportion.

"Sometimes more is made of it in the press than what happens on the field," the Australian said. "After the series, the boys sit together and have a beer. It's the way things are and how the game is played."

http://www.bbc.com/sport/cricket/42214959

 

[as-95]

I disagree. Sledging only adds to the excitement of the game. In fact, they should turn the stump microphones up!!

 

[Saj]

How come Bayliss has never mentioned this before.

Seems like more whining from England.

 

[BaankeJi]

How come Bayliss has never mentioned this before.

Seems like more whining from England.

You are right on the money. What has happened to England? They are crying like little babies.

In my personal opinion, I do not think Aussies are tough either. If they get sledged back, then they do not have an answer. But English staff is too busy crying rather than replying back.

 

[HitWicket]

How come Bayliss has never mentioned this before.

Seems like more whining from England.

Eh? It's not like any England player has been caught saying anything on stump mic that they shouldn't, what's there to whine about in this...?

 

[Chief Destroyer]

He's not whining. He's actually accepting sledging as part of the game. He's asking for the mic to be turned down because of the complaints that the audience does not want to hear expletives.

On the other hand, given England's whinging, this comes across as rather convenient now that they want to do it after hopelessly playing the "good guys."

 

[aloo paratha]

How will viewers hear edges then??

Plus, I kinda do wanna hear what is said on field

 

[giri26]

You cannot turn down the stump microphone as edges and very faint nicks cannot be heard. Also TV viewership is the highest revenue generator for cricket and by turning it down you are not achieving anything.

 

[www787]

Should put them on time out whenever any of them sledge so everyone can learn a lesson from it.
Dumbest suggestion ever.

 

[MenInG]

Poll added - lets see how many agree

 

[MenInG]

How will viewers hear edges then??

Plus, I kinda do wanna hear what is said on field

thats for the umpires - also turn down after delivery bowled and stay off until next one?

 

[MenInG]

Lets hear your views

 

[R0H1T]

No, this exposes the truly ugly fellas as opposed to the goody two shoes they're in front of the media!

 

[MenInG]

Why not hear the truth about what is said between players?

 

[UN talkz]

England have completely lost it....

 

[hadi123]

I voted no! Sledging is part of the game, you wanna hear it to get a feel of the contest going on. So what if you hear 1 or 2 expletives?

 

[htariq25]

NO NO AND NO. Love to hear the banter through stump mics.

 

[Big Mac]

Should turn them up so we can all hear just how embarrassing this so-called sledging is

 

[Saj]

Either stump mics are turned off altogether or they are used at the same volume.

Over to you ICC.

 

[Hasan123]

No keep them.

 

[Abdullah719]

Australia want stump mics turned down, heat turned up against Proteas

Durban: Australia have asked for the stump microphones to be turned down when the ball is not in play against South Africa as they prepare to turn the heat up on the Proteas when they resume their rivalry in Durban on Thursday.

Fresh from using on-field verbal tactics to their advantage in a 4-0 Ashes victory in the summer, Steve Smith's men will arrive at Kingsmead ready to try and unsettle the opposition again in a bid to maintain their unbeaten post-apartheid record in the country.

Their desire to have the stump microphones muted when the ball is dead suggests they would rather not have what is said on the ground beamed out to the viewing public.

In Australia, Channel 9's microphone fader is generally turned up and down by an operator as each ball is bowled, capturing sound effects as a delivery is sent down, and immediately before and after. The fader is usually turned down during the period between deliveries and overs.

However, in South Africa the microphones tend to be left on more often.

Australia, as a result, have asked the local broadcaster and match officials to keep the sound down when the ball is dead during the first Test, reminding them of ICC regulations that dictate that should be the case.

"What happens on the field stays on the field," Australian spinner Nathan Lyon said when asked about the prospect of a verbal battle over the next five days.

"We're all grown men. We compete hard. We know where the line is. We headbutt it probably, but we are not going to go over the line.
"It's a mental game as well as a physical game. If something is going to be said, then no doubt it will be said from both camps.

“I know when I go out to bat I get a warm welcome from most of them. It's part of the game. It's Test-match cricket, it's challenging, it's competitive, you're playing for your country. It's a great battle. We pay the South Africans a lot of respect and I've got no doubt that goes both ways.

It is going to be one hell of a series and I’m pretty excited about it."

Smith has already indicated that the tourists may look to fire up South African paceman Kagiso Rabada, who was suspended for a Test last year after a stump microphone caught him telling Ben Stokes to "f--- off" as he delivered an explosive send-off to the England all-rounder at Lord's.

Australia have a history with stump microphones in South Africa, and it is not just sledging but outbursts of frustration that have been captured on audio.

On their most recent visit, for limited-overs matches in 2016, Aaron Finch was heard walking from the middle expressing his expletive-laden rage at being dismissed via a controversial catch. And in the 2006 Test series, the Australian team was disappointed the microphones were not turned down between balls, with commentator Tony Greig saying at the time the sledging was "the sort of thing that can lose your licence to air".

An aggresive approach in the field was also a feature of Australia's 2-1 win over South Africa on their most recent Test tour there four years ago.

AB de Villiers has previously said the 2014 series was "the most abuse we’ve got on the cricket field", while Faf du Plessis, now the captain, described Michael Clarke's Australians as "like a pack of dogs" in the field.

Du Plessis has since said, though, that the Australian team under Smith was more moderate and "let the cricket do the talking".

That wasn't always the case in the Ashes, however. Australia's treatment of Jonny Bairstow during the first Ashes Test in November was not received well by England, leading veteran seamer James Anderson to call them bullies.

The sledging of Bairstow about his bizarre nightclub greeting of Australian opener Cameron Bancroft was a deliberate ploy and was picked up on a stump microphone, with David Warner heard to say to Anderson that "you shouldn't headbutt our mates". That remark, though, was not aired live and was only broadcast when radio station Triple M later played the audio.

As for whether South Africa might follow the lead of England and try and distract Smith by getting in his ear, the Australian captain was undeterred.

"If they do, go for it," Smith said. "It doesn't bother me. A bit of a verbal challenge actually makes me switch on a bit more and gets me in for the fight. So they can go for their lives."

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/australia-stump-mics-test-proteas-africa-20180228-p4z25z.html

 

[KingKhanWC]

They should stop saying stuff which requires the mic to be turned down.

Fans who pay to watch have the right to see and hear everything on the field of play.

 

[cricketworm]

Rather it should be turned up so we can't hear commentary.

 

[Sadevdesai]

If anything .... the stump mike should be turned UP .... may be that will curtail some flowery words from the players !!!!!!!

 

[giri26]

Everything which happens during a cricket match on the field adds to the excitement. Turning down the stump mic will rob us of that.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

If you google "Australians give a XXXX as they ambush stump microphone" there's an interesting piece about how the Australians have tried to use ambush marketing to get the stump mic turned down.