Should anyone even be surprised by the latest shenanigans in the IPL? But the timing and the level of impropriety involved are startling. The fresh spate of incidents — be it the party on a yacht owned by individuals on the International Cricket Council’s anti-corruption radar or a “mystery woman” once associated with S. Sreesanth spending a night in the room of a player — have occurred just one year after the big spot-fixing scandal broke, landing players in prison. Exemplary punishment and public shaming have clearly failed to deter. It shows that the danger of corruption is ever-present, calling for constant vigilance on the part of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
The nonchalance displayed by all the parties involved is immensely worrying. What sort of environment prevails in the IPL that encourages players to casually disregard rules? Perhaps it stems from the franchises themselves. Reportedly, strict rules are in place and every franchise knows right from wrong, but year after year, scandals break out. Clearly, the rules are taken lightly, or the owners of Kings XI Punjab wouldn’t have thrown a party on a property owned by individuals they had been specifically warned against associating with by the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) of the cricket board. The party might be the least of the problems, but it raises questions about the influence that the yacht owner might wield over the owners of the franchise. Similarly, why didn’t the Delhi Daredevils follow the protocol of informing the ACSU before throwing a party where they invited 100 outsiders to mingle with the players? Perhaps because they didn’t see anything untoward in the matter.
