Two absurd

Ever since the scandal broke,the games most important stakeholders,the fans,have made some basic demands. A thorough scrutiny and a fair trial,they feel,would restore their faith in the sport they have so heavily invested in. Is the Delhi police giving the alleged wrongdoers a fair trial? Does the BCCI have the will,or courage,to undertake a thorough scrutiny? Quite frankly,the clean-up operation so far doesnt inspire confidence. In fact,it sends out the signal that the fan is being cheated again. What this closely-followed,sensitive case needed was a rational middle path between the absurd overreach of the police,which is connecting the players to the shady men who were last seen at a cricket stadium during the games gulf boom in 1980s,and the dismal underperformance of a BCCI with a long record of bending rules and looking the other way.

Cricketers who have allegedly sold the sport,and their souls too,must pay. They certainly need much more than a rap on the knuckles. Yet,with one probe out to blow the case out of proportion,and the other dragging its feet while it looks for a carpet to sweep the dirt under,the game looks caught between a rock and a slushy place.