No complaints this time

Press, 2 December 1981, Page 48

No complaints this time

NZPA Brisbane The touring Pakistan cricketers backed away from criticism of Australia’s umpires in the second test which ended at the Brisbane Cricket Ground yesterday. The tour manager, Mr Ijaz Butt, had objected to the appointment of Mel Johnson, of Brisbane, and Tony Crafter, of Adelaide, after complaints by some of his team after the first test in Perth.

“The umpiring was okay in this match," said Pakistan’s captain, Javed Miandad. Mr Butt left it up to Miandad to put the team’s view by saying: “Javed was in a better position to judge than I was sitting on the sideline.”

Miandad thought the two officials had umpired better than the Perth test, which Australia won by 286 runs. “Everyone makes mistakes and in this match there was one or two by the umpires but it did not favour either

side,” the Pakistan captain said. The Australian captain, Greg Chappell, was full of praise for Messrs Johnson and Crafter. “They did an excellent job and on a world rating I would put them among the best six,” Chappell said. He said he would have been stunned if Pakistan had again complained. “The earlier criticism was unwarranted and they have done a good job throughout,” the Australian captain said. He thought it would be unfair to the two men and to Australia's other umpires on the test panel if changes were not made for matches remaining this summer. “It’s a very heavy series and umpires are out there for six hours giving intense concentration and they are under a lot of pressure from many quarters.” Chappell agreed that one or two mistakes had been made in the test just ended |