Sportsmanship

before i lash out - i must first congratulate the aussies for a deserved win over "our boys". they were clearly the champs - or the team to beat in the final - from the very first game of the world cup. however you got to wonder about the spirit of sportsmanship... what constitutes cheating or gaining unfair competitive advantage?

i am specifically referring to the gilchrist squash ball. immediately after the game my wife commented that gilchrist must surely have been on something - no one else was scoring at the rate he was (not even haydn) and his performance throughout the world cup had been lacklustre at best - come the final and he is hitting at about 1.5 runs per ball. surely something was amiss. then there was the curious incident about him pointing at this gloves once he had reached a particular milestone. Please see this article " Did Australia cheat its way to Victory"

But it does get you thinking about sportsmanship and the expression "it's just not cricket". You got to admire the kiwis when Shane Bond almost made the catch but then pushed the ball onto the rope for a six. he was the first to signal that it was a six - to the umpires no less. there are many other examples even from the world cup but rarely do any of them refer to the aussies... is it ok to be the best at a sport without being a good sport?