1 February, 1981, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne, Australia
Benaud is responding to an infamous incident in which Australian captain Greg Chappell instructed his bowler (and brother) Trevor Chappell to bowl underarm along the pitch, so the last ball could not be elevated and hit for the required six runs by the New Zealand batsman.
Now everyone around Australia will have their own ideas on that, and we always get letters and phone calls about different things that happen, so I don't expect anybody to agree with me, I don't expect you'll get more than fifty percent agreement on anything. Let me just tell you what I think about it. I think it was a disgraceful performance from a captain who got his sums wrong today and I think it should never be permitted to happen again. We keep reading, and hearing that the players are under a lot of pressure, and that they're tired and jaded, and perhaps their judgment and their skill is blunted, well perhaps they might advance that as an excuse for what happened out there today. Not with me they don't. I think it was a very poor performance. One of the worst things I have ever seen done on a cricket field.
Good night.