On Ganguly's behalf, I apologise
Even though I'm a crazy supporter of the Indian team, I strongly feel that in this case, the mistake is Ganguly's for the following reason:

From the clip it seems to me that no one appealed except Sarandeep, which wasn't so much an appeal as an instinctive reaction of a very inexperienced player. The umpire had no choice. However, at this point Ganguly should have intervened and withdrawn the appeal (I'm not sure if that is allowed by the rules but it's stupid if it's not). It should have been clear to everyone near the bat that Vaughan's intention was purely to return the ball to the fielder and there was no way the ball was going to hit the stumps.

People come up with justification along the lines that England or any other team would have done the same. Even so, this was an opportunity for India and Sourav to set an example. They (He) showed poor sportsmanship and violated the spirit of the game. On his behalf I offer apologies for whatever they're worth. Lalit Bhatia

Vaughan was right .. but too frank
Bad sportmanship in my view, but indeed, would we have done the same?? Perhaps Vaughan shouldn't have spoken so candidly in his interview? But then a spade's a spade to a Yorkshireman! Jane Wiltshaw, UK

Vaughan was naive, but Ganguly should have stepped in
Having seen the clip via your excellent website, I would like to make a few comments. As a village cricketer, I know that before you pick the ball up, you look up at the fielder or the bowler or captain to get permission. Given that, Vaughan's reaction could best be described as spontaneous but naive.

While the right of the Indians to appeal is certainly within the letter of the law, it was not within the spirit. Surely the law was introduced to stop you defending your stumps with your hand. That ball was going nowhere near the stumps.

Had the situation been reversed, although I am sure someone would have appealed on the England team, resulting in a raised finger, I like to think that Nasser Hussain would have withdrawn the appeal, as most other Test captains would, Waugh, Waqar and Jayasuriya included. It appears that Ganguly lacks an appreciation of the subtler side of the game. Kevin Osman

Poor sportsmanship from India
I am not sure whether it was a moment of madness for Michael, and not sure what English players would have done under the same circumstances. But as a cricketer i feel it was definitely poor sportsmanship from the Indians. Anil KV, Bangalore

The ball was dead, the umpire was wrong
It was a DEAD BALL, and therefore NOT OUT. To me it was temporarily trapped in the clothing or equipment of the batsman. Jayaprakash should know better and is typical of all sub-continent umpires. They all suffer from NFI syndrome. No frigging idea! John Beech, Australia

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