Spar wars continue as players flirt with 'crossing the line'

MELBOURNE: India and Australia's sledging wars are threatening to take the spotlight away from the largely excellent cricket on view. Virat Kohli had turned it up a notch on Sunday by suggesting he did not respect players like Mitchell Johnson, who he said "mouth off at the slightest opportunity". Day Four of the MCG Test again saw ugly incidents of sledging which now threaten to sour the sprit in which this series began.It was Johnson again who seemed to be gesticulating angrily at the Indians as he walked back to the pavilion, while Kohli laid it into Haddin. Ishant Sharma gave Watson a sound and totally unnecessary send-off.
As players from both sides walk the thin line between gamesmanship and dissension, it has been left to the umpires to play mother hen. But the bad blood is now spilling off the field as players regularly take their on-field jibes to the public domain.
Like Ryan Harris earlier, David Warner, no stranger to controversy himself, urged Virat Kohli to confine the hostilities to the field on Monday and said the players shouldn't "cross the line".
But he seemed confused when asked what "crossing the line" meant. Harris had earlier said that "if he (Kohli) doesn't keep it on the field and brings it here (to the media) it's a problem".
Warner added to that by saying, "I didn't see the sendoff to Mitchell but I saw Kohli lurking around there with Brad. If that's the way he wants to go about the game of cricket then let him be. I personally think what happens on the field stays on the field and it shouldn't be brought off the field. We do play cricket in an aggressive style but we're not going to be in-your-face like that at all."
But he contradicted himself moments later by saying, "We're still going to be playing in-your-face cricket as we normally do but we won't be stepping across that line. Crossing the line is not the best way to go about it."
Is "crossing the line" just a figure of speech?
Asked what "crossing the line" meant, Warner seemed bemused. "It's a line you draw over here and I'm not supposed to cross it." Is that all? "It's just a figure of speech, isn't it, which we use all the time," he said.
Like the "spirit of cricket", "crossing the line" seems to have become a cliche.
"When you put your international cap on, it's a different story," Warner said. "Both want to win. But letting your bat and ball do the talking is probably the best way to go about it."
Since the 'Monkeygate' episode in 2008, India have tried to be overtly aggressive with the Aussies in a bid to "give it back", as some of the Indian players put it. It's up to the game's custodians to ensure another 'Monkeygate', or worse, is not about to happen when these two sides play each other. Defining the "line" would be a good place to start.
"Off the field, nobody takes it to heart," said Ashwin. Asked if Kohli had "crossed the line", Warner said, "I wouldn't say that, no. It's up to the umpires to manage that."