Cricket’s spot-fixing scandal and its unprecedented jail terms have battered the sport’s credibility, but experts say the case will eventually benefit what was once known as the gentlemen’s game.
The sentences handed out to three Pakistan players — Salman Butt, Mohammed Amir and Mohammed Asif — and their agent Mazhar Majeed for spot-fixing during last year’s Lord’s Test against England have stunned the cricket world, but India’s World Cup-winning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he had no sympathy for fixers.
“It’s the worst thing you can do while representing your country,” Dhoni said.
It is not the first time that the cricket world has been rocked by scandal. In 2000, match-fixing led to life bans for Test captains Hansie Cronje (South Africa), Mohammed Azharuddin (India) and Salim Malik (Pakistan), but cricketers had never previously been sent to jail for corrupt practices — something that could make players think twice before they do deals with shady bookmakers.
Popular cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle said the scandal would serve as a wake-up call for players, administrators and fans.
“I fear this might lead to more cynicism, a greater feeling that games, or moments, are fixed,” Bhogle said. “It may be a bad day for Butt and company, but it may not be such a bad day for cricket. Cricketers can now see what may happen.”
Cricket’s dark underbelly, plagued by underworld match-fixing gangs who reportedly bet millions of dollars on virtually every match, remains a constant threat to the sport.
Indian police regularly bust betting rings across the country when cricket internationals are being played, but offenders often get off lightly.
India’s Central Bureau of Investigation gave a prescient warning about the underworld’s links with cricket when it probed the match-fixing scandal in 2000.
“During the inquiry, it was learnt that the lure of easy money has gradually attracted the underworld into this racket,” its report said. “It seems that it is only a matter of time before major organized gangs take direct control of this racket, a phenomenon that will have implications not only for cricket, but for national security as a whole.”
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two
RSS