That 145;cartel146; theory again

The mystery surrounding the sudden death of Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer grows. As the autopsy remains 8216;inconclusive8217;, the death is now categorised as 8220;suspicious8221;. And the rumour mills churn out theories by the dozen.

The mystery surrounding the sudden death of Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer grows. As the autopsy remains 8216;inconclusive8217;, the death is now categorised as 8220;suspicious8221;. And the rumour mills churn out theories by the dozen.

One such 8216;theory8217;, espoused by, among others, a Pakistani pacer, is that a betting cartel could had a hand in Woolmer8217;s death.

Sarfraz Nawaz has alleged to PTI that the coach was on the verge of filing a report against some of the top cricketers and officials who were linked to a massive match-fixing racket after his team8217;s loss against Ireland, and that cost the coach his life.

This may be a rather far-fetched assumption, rather colourful too. But one cannot but go back in memory to yet another World Cup, in soccer.

In the 1994 football World Cup in the US, Colombian defender Andres Escobar Saldarriaga was shot dead after his team bowed out in the first round. The murder was attributed to the own-goal that Escobar 8216;scored8217;. That goal brought terrible gambling losses to several drug lords, especially belonging to the infamous Medelliacute;n Cartel.

The cartel had bet large amounts of money on Colombia to win the Cup, or at least qualify for the second round.

Escobar was the defender in 1990 and 1994. His jersey number was 2, and he was known by the nickname 8216;El Caballero del Futbol8217; 8216;The Gentleman of Soccer8217;.

Story continues below this ad

Escobar8217;s infamous own goal occurred in a match against the United States on June 22. Stretching to cut out a US cross, he deflected the ball into his own net in the second match of Group A. The USA won the game 2-1, and as a result, Colombia were eliminated.

On July 2, 1994, Escobar was shot 12 times outside 8216;El Indio8217; bar, located in a Medellin suburb in Columbia.