Spot Fixing – Dispute, but nothing new!

Over the years, the rules of the game have been changed, but fortunately, the meaning and the essence of the spirit of the game have never been changed. With the recent dispute namely the ‘Spot Fixing’, I feel the spirit of the game called cricket has been challenged, once again.

Be it the bodyline bowling in 1930’s, be it the on field sledging, be it the Sydney test between Australia and India in 2007-08, be it the serial match fixing buzzes, be it the mysterious death of Bob Woolmer during 2007 world cup, and up to the very recent spot fixing incident, all those players/persons who are guilty have added themselves in to the history books for all the wrong reasons. After all of these incidents have devastated the game, still there are some cricketers who maintain the decency proving the game as the gentlemen’s. I’d like to say hats off to them before I move on.

After thinking deep, somehow I’ve developed a kind of soft corner for the cricketers involved in this. At the same time, the cricket boards, bookies, and the ICC are my main aims to arrow my comments.

Pakistan’s cricket board stands tall in the whole buzz, I feel. The way it bans it’s own players and the way it calls them back in to the team is no mystery to the honorable board members. Board has to support the players, I too agree, but not to the extent that it fails to inspire the players not to commit mistakes again and again!

The world T20 champions, the players from Pakistan are naturally talented and they can play beautiful cricket coming to the game. I’ve read an article which mentioned that most of the young boys of the team had been headed from the poor families. It must be easily understood to get the problems they would have faced to get the tag of playing for the national team. It is never easy in this competitive world.

The less monetary growth and the poor payment by the PCB are the main points for the bookies to attract the players. Of course, we may say, money should not be the criteria for the players and they need to play cricket, but to get these wise words or to understand the essence of representing the nation, the players are not even minimum educated. Their minds have to be tuned before they are allowed to play for the country. But sadly, their minds have been tuned as per bookies before the PCB does something.

Players should be educated more. Education when I say, it is not in terms of degrees, but rather it is in terms of the spirit of the game. This is the solution I see at the moment from the players’ side. And coming to the bookies, its not so easy to stop them as long as the money rules their minds. We can not do much on their side so let us not think too much.

ICC shall go for the strict monitoring track around the players and most importantly the team managements in and out of the pavilions. The code of conduct shall be stricter and at the same time player friendly, after all, they are also human beings not machines.

I’m very sure, for the issue which could not have been concluded over the years by many talented people, I alone can not conclude anything sitting back home and writing this post. Hence there is no proper conclusion here as well. With what I know and within few paragraphs I could suggest only this much for the time being.

Every shade that comes out of everything expresses something. We must understand it and move forward with a hope.

Hope the game wins always!