Ian Healy offends Channel 9's viewers in bizarre fashion

Healy, who earned 119 Test caps as Australian wicketkeeper, pretended he was playing a violin as Symonds explained in the commentary box that he was playing with a pink bat grip in order to raise awareness about breast cancer. - from ABC Sport

Channel 9's switchboards were jammed with complaints as a result of this. Ian Healy's explanation is a bit perplexing too. He said:

"I was winding Andrew Symonds up to talk about his pink grip, you know, we've got these massive big blokes using pink grips on their bat and that was the wind-up. As he got into his promotion of the scheme I did the air violin as people are calling it now.

"People have perceived that to be me mocking breast cancer, now no one in the world would mock breast cancer research or breast cancer."

That doesn't make any sense. Maybe there's a cultural difference here, but in the UK the 'air violin' is meant to indicate a lack of sympathy. It means that the target of the gesture is speaking with unwarranted self-pity. That doesn't really apply to batting with a pink bat handle, does it?

Channel 9 have accepted Healy's apology.