Bhogle-Manjrekar On-Air Spat Over Pink Ball Sparks Major Controversy

Commentator Bhogle had simply suggested Manjrekar for a fair "post-mortem" after the match to study if the players were facing any such difficulty in sighting the pink ball

Bhogle-Manjrekar On-Air Spat Over Pink Ball Sparks Major Controversy / Photo: AFP

Kolkata: Cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar’s awkward on-air spat with fellow commentator Harsha Bhogle over the visibility of the pink ball used in India vs Bangladesh pink ball Test at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens sparked major controversy. During the match, the Bangladeshi batsmen took some hard hits onto their helmet, courtesy some lethal deliveries from the Indian bowling attack. Following which, commentator Bhogle had simply suggested Manjrekar for a fair "post-mortem" after the match to study if the players were facing any such difficulty in sighting the pink ball. "Well there is a post-mortem done on this game and there should be a post mortem on this game. Visibility of that ball will be a big factor against the big white sight-screen," Bhogle said. "Don't think so. Because when you see the slip catchers the way they have taken catches, I don't think visibility is an issue at all. The texture of the ball is the issue," responded Manjrekar. Bhogle, however, was adamant about learning the player's POV, who were out there in the middle and actually dealing with the pink ball. "You need to ask perhaps, for us, those who have played the game, we have a fair idea of what’s happening out there,” Manjrekar responded to Bhogle implying that he had a fair idea as he had "played the game". The hashtag SanjayManjrekar trended on Twitter after Manjrekar seemed to suggest that he knew better about cricket than Bhogle since he had played the game. Cricket fans came out in support of Bhogle. One fan criticised Manjrekar: "Low blow from @sanjaymanjrekar there". Another post read: "Imagine insulting or even making fun of one of the finest analysts of the game in that manner. You deserve to be expelled from the commentary box. Absolute disgrace. #SanjayManjrekar". A Bhogle fan commented: "Sanjay Manjrekar questioning Harsha Bhogle's cricketing expertise is blasphemy. #INDvBAN." More was in store for Manjrekar, as another user wrote: "@sanjaymanjrekar I think that was a very cheap shot saying to @bhogleharsha 'For those of us who played the game'." (With IANS Inputs)