New Delhi: Lashing out at the media, former India captain Rahul Dravid said on-field behaviour of cricketers has improved over the years but media's continuous scrutiny of the code of conduct violation, always gave it a different colour.

Dravid said it's because of the increased media coverage that has given a false impression about the players crossing the line more often.

''Players' behaviour has not deteriorated but improved over the years. It is only because of the media scrutiny that the feeling has rose that cricketers are breaking the limits,'' Dravid said at the 'Hindustan Times Leadership Summit' here today.

He further said, ''Earlier in the '60s and '70s also players used to involve in such chit-chats but media would not focus on that. But now at the end of the day when you go to press conference, you are even asked about small things like what two players were talking in the field, which is often blown out of proportion.'' The 36-year-old Dravid stressed that he did not consider sledging against the spirit of the game.

''No, I don't think so that's against the spirit of the game,'' he said.

Echoing the views of Dravid, former England captain Michael Vaughan said, ''I did not mind it (sledging) as long as it was in the spirit of the game which was hard spirit.'' Replying to a query on whether the rules related to sledging were more suited to non-Asian cultures, the right-handed Indian batsman was of a different opinion.

He said, ''unpleasant remarks were prevalent in all the cultures.

''If you live in India you deal with it (swear words) all the time. We have it all the time in our dressing rooms. Moreover there cannot be rules about confrontations,'' Dravid added.

UNI

Tags: rahul dravid, on-field behavior, media, players.