Problem is cultural

WHY so much talk about cricket? Why not about “big issues” like hunger, poverty, homelessness. War.

That was the conversation the other night around the dinner table.

And it’s true. But the ball tampering issue is also important because our national identity is so often caught up with the performance of our sporting teams.

We expect a lot from our cricketers; that they always win and yet somehow always do it honourably. Perhaps we were naive to think there wasn’t the potential for an ugly underbelly to this need for success.

Like many other cricket fans, I felt let down, even betrayed by this ball tampering ugliness. It felt shameful to be an Australian cricket fan - a particularly uncomfortable feeling.

Just as uncomfortable, however, was watching Steve Smith sobbing at that airport media conference. It was heartbreaking to see a young man in such a state, to see his father standing quietly at his shoulder.

But is the issue really about a young man, or young men, who made a mistake?

Is it even just about cricket? Cricket is played just as hard as other sports and the stakes are just as high. It can’t be placed on a pedestal as somehow more honourable.

No, what this wretched business showed was that some players couldn’t find that line between right and wrong.

Yet why are we surprised? Fewer people respect, accept or even set boundaries these days.

So perhaps before we examine what’s wrong in our cricket culture, we need to examine what’s wrong with our entire culture - or at least the direction it’s going in.

Issues in our national team surely point to issues with our national psyche.