Jesse Ryder. Photo / Getty Images
Colourful Black Caps batsman Jesse Ryder took to Twitter to voice his frustration at being run out by his batting partner in a provincial one-day cricket match.
Ryder, opening for Wellington against Northern Districts on Sunday, was sent packing after a mixup with Stephen Murdoch.
He then tweeted: "I just
got run out by my other batter. What a waste of time this day is ... I love getting left high an [sic] dry by my other batter."
However, the impulsive tweet has not landed Ryder - no stranger to controversy - in hot water this time. New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan said there were boundaries that should be adhered to, but he could understand Ryder's frustration.
"Jesse was cross and frustrated and anyone could get pretty angry," he said. "Perhaps it's better than throwing a bat against a wall."
Vaughan's view is that Twitter is here to stay and it's best to make sure it is used sensibly rather than in a potentially damaging way. "We are pretty relaxed as long as players don't bring the game into disrepute or sully its reputation.
"You get the good with the mediocre. We let the players know there are limits, but it's the way society is, it's a fact of life and I don't think we can preclude it."
Ryder is understood to have been unhappy at having to leave the New Zealand camp as part of its rotation policy during the six-game ODI series with Pakistan to give all 15 players game time ahead of the World Cup, which starts on February 19 on the subcontinent.
Teammate Scott Styris tweeted Ryder with the advice, "Don't let the idiots get to you bud! The media are the problem, not you".
Styris is known as a prolific tweeter, as are several top players. Captain Dan Vettori is not particularly interested. Asked his view on tweeting yesterday, Vettori quipped: "I'm not as much of a narcissist as Scotty so I can't get on it. They can do what they want, they're all grown men."
