It’s been revealed a high-ranking official at the ABC had to intervene after Cricket Australia (CA) imposed a media ban on the national broadcaster.
Hugh Marks, the managing director of the ABC, spoke to CA CEO Todd Greenberg on Tuesday night about the decision not to make Test players available for interviews with his staff following on-air criticism from Stuart Clark on Monday.
Speaking live on ABC, Clark said: ‘James Allsopp who runs cricket in Australia, the head of cricket, community cricket, is a grade club cricket coach that throws underarm balls to kids.
‘[Ben Oliver] runs high-performance cricket, but I’m not really sure what he does now.
‘Then you have George [Bailey], who is the chairman of selectors. Does he have the gravitas or the leadership skills to tell Andrew McDonald and Steve Smith or Pat Cummins what to do? He should do, 100 per cent, but I don’t think he does.’
Clark’s ABC radio attack on chairman of selectors Bailey and senior CA executives Allsopp and Oliver was deemed ‘personal’ and ‘out of order’ by Greenberg.
ABC managing director Hugh Marks talked to Todd Greenberg on Tuesday night about the decision not to make Test players available for interviews
Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg was unimpressed with Stuart Clark’s comments
‘On this occasion, I thought he overstepped the mark by talking not just about the decisions, but individually about people. I thought that was personal. I said that to him,’ Greenberg said.
CA banned its players from talking to the ABC after Day 3 of the Sydney Test, and hours later Marks phoned Greenberg to vent his displeasure at the decision.
The ABC has the radio broadcast rights for this summer’s Ashes series.
Cricket Australia asked the ABC if Clark would retract his comments but he refused to do so and the ban was put in place.
CA maintains it had decided to allow its players to resume talking to the ABC after Day 4 of the Test, prior to Marks calling Greenberg to complain about the ban.
Broadcasters do not have a contractual obligation to speak to players after a day’s play.
However, Cricket Australia works to maintain relationships with broadcasters by asking certain players to conduct interviews after they have left the cricket field.
Clark and Greenberg had a conversation about the former Test fast bowler’s on-air comments after Day 3 in the Victor Trumper Stand.
Stuart Clark played 24 Tests for Australia and is now in broadcasting and sports management
Clark addressed the controversy on ABC radio on Wednesday morning.
‘It was a quiet old day yesterday. I felt very fulfilled and content with my day,’ Clark said.
‘We want to see the cricket and hear from the players. It is part of the reason the broadcasters pay so much for the rights. I hope we get to talk someone who scores a hundred or takes a five-for (wickets).
‘The amount of people who have reached out to me [who] I haven’t spoken to in years…I’m fine.
‘I had a good night’s sleep. It’s my opinion. Personally, I’ve moved on and it’s not causing any grief in my life.’
Clark also pointed out on Tuesday that he has, at times, been very complimentary of the selectors and people at Cricket Australia.
‘So that seems to be missed. It’s not just all a one-way street,’ he said.
Former AFL great and broadcaster Kane Cornes described CA’s stance as ‘laughable.’
Daily Mail contacted the ABC for comment.
