Language hurdles and a race to get answers

Colombo: “No questions in Hindi, please” was a request from the International Cricket Council (ICC) before the start of the pre-match press conference with India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. This request irked some journalists from north India terribly.

And while the press conference began with questions in English, some journalists, especially from Hindi television channels, just could not resist. So when a question was posed in Hindi, the India team Media Manager asked him to follow instructions. The immediate response from many media people present was: “Why no Hindi? We are asking the India skipper.” While a few agreed to avoid Hindi, some felt it was an insult to India’s national language. A journalist from south India chipped in with a suggestion that even if the question was in Hindi, Dhoni could answer in English.

Amidst all this drama, Dhoni kept his cool despite the press conference being held under the scorching sun at midday at the Nondescript cricket club ground prior to their first-match training session. As soon as the press conference ended, some journalists were seen seeking Dhoni’s support to change the language policy.

Dhoni tried to cool things down by reminding them about the event being an international one with journalists from all over the world, so it would be impolite to answer in a language that only a few would follow. “If a question is asked in Hindi and I reply in Hindi, there could be someone else with the same question in English and I will to state the same thing all over again. Do you want me to keep repeating answers in different languages?” he asked.

Interestingly, in the pre-match press conference with Afghanistan skipper Nawroz Mangal, it was a totally different scene. Even if the questions were in English, his responses were in Pushto, the official language of Afghanistan. While Mangal follows English, since he cannot speak it fluently, the Afghanistan Media Manager translated his answers into English.

It was a case of racing after the four captains of India, Ireland, Afghanistan and Australia for their pre-match press conferences, as the teams practised at different grounds. With two matches being held on the second day of the tournament and four captains to be met, journalists had to turn into sprinters.

Right after Dhoni’s press conference, journalists had to rush to Premadasa stadium to meet with Ireland skipper William Porterfield. The press conference had already begun by the time a few reached the venue. Very soon after that, Australia skipper George Bailey was addressing the media at another ground. For those who found it difficult to get there, Matt Cenin, Media Advisor for Cricket Australia, emailed the audio version of this press conference.

After all, Twenty20 cricket is a quick format, and hence the race after the captains has to be similarly swift!