ICC distressed by politicians' comments

John Howard and Mahinda Rajapakse, the respective prime ministers of Australia and Sri Lanka, have been asked to exercise restraint when making statements about controversial issues in cricket. Ehsan Mani, the ICC president, feels that the controversy over Muttiah Muralitharan's doosra was blown out of proportion by their remarks.

Speaking to reporters in London, Mani said, "it's not helpful when high-profile people make these sort of comments. I wish they'd talk to us first rather than making statements in the public arena."

Murali had threatened to boycott Sri Lanka's forthcoming tour of Australia after the Howard, told a radio station that he believed Murali chucked. However, Howard immediately went on the defensive and asserted that his own comments were blown out of proportion.

The Advertiser quoted Howards as saying, "I was simply reflecting on the scientific research in Perth in relation to one of his deliveries. Muralitharan is very welcome to come to Australia when Sri Lanka tours later this year."

Howard was referring to the recent tests conducted at the University of Western Australia, which found that the straightening of Murali's his arm while bowling the doosra were more than the permissible limit for a spinner.

Kevin Maher, who is the president of Cricket Far-North, the body responsible for Tests in Darwin and Cairns, said that he wished Howard hadn't made the statements in public. "Is Johnny qualified to speak on this matter?" Maher asked, "He might be a cricket lover but I don't know that it's his place to call him [Murali] a chucker. It's disappointing. The whole city of Cairns was looking forward to him coming. The clash between Muralitharan and Warne was a big thing for us."