*Official* Australia Tour of India 2019

[Burgey]

Nothing any sporting team ever does apropos military glorification will come close to the cringe induced by Steve Waugh's team wearing slouch hats over and with their baggy greens while touring restored trenches at Gallipoli on their way to England in 2001, and re-enacting Charles Bean's famous photo of cricket being played on Shell Green at ANZAC Cove.

 

[vcs]

 

[Burgey]

Steve Waugh wearing a slouch hat over his baggy green in the second pic. Somehow it's cringe worthy but totally appropriate for him at the same time. You can do that sort of thing when you've been the pre-eminent batsman in world cricket for the preceding decade i suppose. How good is Blewy with the wrap around Oakleys under the slouch hat as well? You just know if they'd stayed the night there he'd have been one of the blokes hanging his washing over a grave stone at the Lone Pine cemetery.

Honestly, it's also peak- John Howard's Australia, isn't it? Just the ****ing worst thing ever.

 

[Gnske]

What a terrible year 2001 was

 

[stephen]

I don't know if I'd call Gallipoli military glorification. It was an important part of our national history, but it's more about remembering the cost and futility of war than glorifying our armed forces.

If we wanted to glorify our armed forces we'd be doing tours of the well of Beersheba and the other historical sites from the Sinai campaign in WWI.

 

[ankitj]

I thought keeping politics out of sport was like a massive thing. I was weirded out by the caps

You would have to leave that for people affected by it (i.e. Indians) to pass a comment on. Loss of 40 lives in that attack which left the families collecting fragments of bodies of their loved ones is painful and has sensitivities attached to it. What Indian team did by wearing the caps was a great gesture.

 

[Burgey]

I don't know if I'd call Gallipoli military glorification. It was an important part of our national history, but it's more about remembering the cost and futility of war than glorifying our armed forces.

If we wanted to glorify our armed forces we'd be doing tours of the well of Beersheba and the other historical sites from the Sinai campaign in WWI.

Cant agree with that these days.

 

[mr_mister]

Generally a black arm band would do. The Pakistan pushups were cringe and the military cap worn the other night made me immediately think of anti Pakistan sentiments

I'm sure it's justified but it looks odd to the outside world imo. I just think most military glorifications are really old hat. MS Dhonis honourary colonel rank included.

And yes the Steve Waugh digger stuff was weird too

 

[Arachnodouche]

Civilians should stay the **** out of military matters, period. I say that as neither hawk nor peace maven. War is unfortunate, but also sometimes necessary. Have some tact and class and get on with what you're paid to do.

 

[Burner]

Disregarding all the politics, I thought the caps actually looked pretty sick.

 

[Burner]

And I mean sick as in it looked cool.

 

[BSM]

What are the ICC's stance on political gestures in cricket anyway? Haven't some teams been punished for similar messages or am I just getting this confused with football (i.e. the whole poppy fiasco with England)

I agree with what some people have said here. Black armbands or even caps, would have sufficed as a gesture to those affected by the attack. But the military caps would give the impression of simultaneous support for military action against Pakistan, which obviously is not something that should be represented in a game of sport, and especially in one where the other country is a key nation.

 

[ankitj]

What are the ICC's stance on political gestures in cricket anyway? Haven't some teams been punished for similar messages or am I just getting this confused with football (i.e. the whole poppy fiasco with England)

I agree with what some people have said here. Black armbands or even caps, would have sufficed as a gesture to those affected by the attack. But the military caps would give the impression of simultaneous support for military action against Pakistan, which obviously is not something that should be represented in a game of sport, and especially in one where the other country is a key nation.

It was in solidarity with the families of 40+ military men who were killed in suicide bombing. Not in support of air strike.

 

[BSM]

It was in solidarity with the families of 40+ military men who were killed in suicide bombing. Not in support of air strike.

Doesn't mean that they have to wear military colours though? Black is a pretty universal colour of mourning

I'm not saying that that wasn't what they were doing with the military caps, just that it doesn't work that great as a separate and isolated commemoration of the victims in the context of real military tensions. That's plain to see.

 

[Starfighter]

It was in solidarity with the families of 40+ military men who were killed in suicide bombing. Not in support of air strike.

It seems that you've rather misunderstood his point. Wearing something like a black arm band is a well established way of showing solidarity for tragedies. Wearing a military cap is different and can easily be construed as sending a message beyond that of 'mere' mourning and solidarity, particularly from the perspective of an outsider looking at it from a more neutral perspective.