Is Dressing Room Bullying Affecting Cricket?

Former England cricket captain Kevin Pietersen has accused team members of dressing room bullying, and said many players were a negative influence on the team. So, does it affect the team's performance?

"Well, it does happen. Ironically, it happened when they were doing well," cricket commentator and expert Ayaz Memon said.

Former Mumbai cricket team captain Amol Mazumdar said there is an unwritten rule in dressing rooms: No discussions about it outside. He added that every team has players who would like to show their authority. "I don't agree with Pietersen's method of highlighting dressing room talks in his book," Mazumdar said.

Memon said Pietersen has been a maverick, a show-ponny and a grumbler. "He has been a guy who always wanted attention."

Memon added that Lala Amarnath was sent back on grounds of indiscipline. He also highlighted other similar instances in Indian cricket but none of the books in India discussed these instances.

Mazumdar was of the view that when you are playing a team sport, you have to adhere to team rules. He also felt that Pietersen was just spilling his beans out."You cannot criticise one and all in the team. There are unwritten rules, and you need to follow them," Mazumdar said.

Sports journalist Abhishek Dubey said these things are part and parcel of the game. "Leadership is the important factor. And the team should follow the decisions taken by the captain," Dubey added.

Differences have always been there in teams, Memon said but pointed out that the crux is how quickly differences are resolved. "Politics is bound to happen. A level of maturity must prevail and the captain has to ensure that the team forgets the differences."

(Image courtesy: https://www.kevinpietersen.com)