Irony is squatting on Indian cricket’s central square. As the Supreme Court mandated Committee of Administrators, that came into existence because of the 2013 IPL spot-fixing crisis, was readying to hold BCCI elections and take the exit door, the stink of another corruption controversy has hit the air. The latest shenanigans, first reported by this newspaper, revealed that fixers and bookmakers haven’t just survived the checks and balances put in place by several probe panels post-2013, but they have continued to thrive. Investigation by BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) shows the deep infiltration of the shady sharks in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), a T20 tournament featuring top international cricketers. Grievously, it also divulged how fixers with links to seedy betting syndicate had evolved — they no longer hunt and hire players, they now take control of teams and have plans in place to compromise and manipulate the entire league. With most T20 state leagues attracting the cream of grass roots talent, the proximity of the unscrupulous and impressionable was worryingly unhealthy for the country’s most popular game.
As has been with most cricket corruption cases in the past, the administrators haven’t come out shining in dealing with the muck. Predictably, their first reaction has been to draw the curtains, shut the windows, bolt the door; thus suffocating transparency. It was only after the media reports about the ACU findings surfaced, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) revealed that an internal probe panel was already in place to investigate the scandal. Keeping the most important stake-holders, the fans, informed about the modern game’s ugly truth has never suited the Indian cricket administrators. Over the years, one of the biggest reasons for the establishment to continue to remain silent over the corruption issue was the hypocritical concern that if big names are revealed, the faithfuls would turn their back and the game would tumble. Historically, they are paranoid that the golden goose would be cooked forever. The rationale doesn’t hold up to close scrutiny. It’s naive to suggest that fans would continue to support a game that they suspect is filled with crooked elements rather than have it all cleaned.
The CoA too hasn’t been pro-active in this moment of crisis. The nation of a billion fans — those who fill stands around the world and keep the imperial-era game survive — deserve better. The cricket administrators need to understand that the seed of doubt about a cricket game controlled by fixers — even an inconsequential TNCA match at a cricket outpost — is a big blow to the sport’s overall credibility.
