Cricket Today: Indo-Australian Entertainment in Farce?

by Dr. Abdul Ruff Colachal

(November 12, New Delhi, Sri Lanka Guardian) Australians who played against India in India have returned to Sydney with zero marks to their discredit as they declined to win even a single match of the 4 Test played in Indian towns. From the start to the end they played the game according to the pre-plan scheme hand out to them by the organizers who wanted to India to win and to make a select few appear very important players and reduce the importance of some others. Indo-Australians teams showcased the matches in such as way so as to make cricket a total farce and the record set by individuals and teams unreliable. Australians seemed to practice the tricks only to lose matches by underplaying on prior understanding.

Indo-Australian cricket has drawn the attention of the cricket lovers as they seem to be keenly engaged in playing a sort of joint cricket exercises. It looks funny to watch how much strains the Australians take to show that they are a weak a team against “strong” India and make feel showdowns and verbal fights over flimsy issues to show that they are indeed playing serious matches. Behind the planned showcasing of cricket on the ground, one clearly sees the phenomenon of match-fixing. It is also a fact both these countries conduct joint military exercises.

International Match-fixing?

Match-fixing is not a new phenomenon in cricket; it has been going on ever since cricket was introduced by the Englishmen as a sport of “gentlemen” in order to keep their colonies in good humors. It seems a strong team playing against a weak one in the latter's country would show some lenience in order to keep the locals in good humors. At times, some friendly understanding between similar teams could end up in non-tensed situation with the weak team looking cheerful.
No introduction is needed about India’s hidden agendas or to tell about Indian greed for big status in every thing and its fight for some importance in world affairs. It is using its militarization of Jammu Kashmir as a trump to showcase its military power to UNSC and come closer to the USA that has literally colonized Afghanistan and Iraq. Indians are so proud that they are fine shooters against others killing about a lakh innocent Kashmiris that any counsel to take them out of their self-importance dream in the world would be simply futile.

Australians are world champions in cricket, while Sri Lanka remains the Asian Champions in the field, while India has been crying over its failure to reach any where near. Recent years, therefore, India has been indulged in match-fixing to highlight importance of some of its players. Matches are fixed in such a way that the end result is foretold. The powerful cricket mafia, as it is widely known, is behind the matches and guiding the players via different techniques.

India thinks in today’s world only deceptive methods like “match-fixing” and bribing would be beneficial to Indian greatness. For quite some time now India has been trying to defeat the world champions somehow and the media are dying too hard to project any inch of success in sport to the maximum extent. Off late, there have been a lot of tensions between the teams since Indians fight with the Australian cricketers. On flimsy grounds, while the actual reasons seem to Indian disappointment with Aussies with their not “cooperating” with Indians. Australians clam they do favor Indians, but luck does not and hence Indians fail miserably even with all the pro-India techniques being employed by them. One formula reached out by them is to let Indians win the toss and make the best possible score and Aussies underplay in such way Indians don’t lose just like that.

Joint cricketism

By cleverly using the rules of joint military exercises and applying the US strategy of showcasing “power” to the regions, India has managed to coerce the Australians to play joint cricket exercises. Current Test between India and Australia in India is interesting too. In stead of three or five, they have decided to play only four matches. They are supposed to underplay to show they are weakened by a "strong" India and make Indian team appear a super team, and project Sachin the greatest cricketer of the universe so that he could be given some more national awards. Thus Aussies have now helped the Indian team in a big way. First they have helped Sachin to make a new record by breaking the Lara’s world record. Plus, then they have also given 100 runs to Ganguli as a parting gift. In order to make it appear they are not doing anything for India under Indian pressure for money, they also give some 50s and 100s to others as well in a sustained manner.

Nice Australian Guys, allowed too many runs for Indian kids. As per match-fixing, it seems, India was to get 3 matches including the final one. The main goal of the test matches is to clear the case of Sachin, but the Ganguli case came up on the way when he declared to leave cricket for ever. Then the Aussies have considered his case also sympathetically and offered him 100. Now Indian guys should reciprocate by giving them all 100 runs. Indian prestige is at stake now. India has to honor agreement of giving Ponting another 300 runs in return for service for Sachin and Ganguly. Aussies nice guys and should ask Indian boys to let them have hundreds each for their selfless services to terrorist India.

Australian cricketers or Aussies are indeed nice guys. This time Australians have helped Indians in a big way. Sachin etc make and break records as per match-fixing. They let Sachin to “set” his record straight, Indians don’t even thank them. Indians gave just 5 runs to Ponting and 54 runs to Hussey, why? Indians are obsessed with number games. What a people and what a country? Most of the Australian players played shabbily. Enough of dramas!

Muslim Players in “Secular” India

It is a known fact, increasingly nervous and annoyed with Muslims, India wants to keep the Muslims at low levels and reduce their importance in every field while promoting only a few Muslims who are hinduised and Hindu-minded. In sports the position is no better. India used former skipper and one of the best batsmen Azharuddin to boost its cricket image, but later cut his importance by cooking up issues for what India government is solely responsible. The way the Muslim cricketers are presented in dirty colors by India media needs no illustrations. Indian media make Indian Hindus hate Muslims and their players.

Zaheer Khan, who has been fined, is angry because the Aussies did not give him another 50 plus. But he should understand the match-fixing “rules” or norms. They have priorities, Sachin, Gaurav were more important than Zaheer. If he understands the "rules" he could even become the captain some day. Other wise, he could be thrown out of team and would never play cricket in life. After all Zaheer, a Muslim is just tolerated in Indian team. If he reads the writings by Indian cricket fans in Indian media being promoted by anti-Muslim Indian media controlled by intelligence, he would understand where exactly he stands. Indian media just don’t want Muslims gain any importance in the country, in sports inclusive and they mercilessly criticize them if they don’t prove their “worth” and in fact the media don’t like Muslims to reach the top positive news items, except in areas like the so-called “terrorism”. Indian media are keen to portray Muslims as unwanted “terrorists’. Most Indians and their media burn with inferior complexes and show disgust when a Muslim, despite all the ill-minded Hindu odds, shines. Zaheer should realize any Indian Muslim who wants to shine has to behave like a slave with Hindus, worse than the unfortunate Kashmiris who have been tortured by Indian terror forces. In other word, India and its loyal media cannot tolerate any Muslim playing smart without their permission.

The fact is that as all stalwarts bit dust and unable to make any runs, the Aussies deiced to give the weak batsmen 50s; Harbajan and Zaheer got those runs as a gift from Australia, but Zaheer expecting similar situation each time is indeed ridiculous and awful. Zaheer still could feel let him down by Aussies by denying him another 50plus when Harbajan could be considered so sympathetically by the visitors. Perhaps they would have done it if the Indian premier were a Muslim. But when will that happen in democratic and secular India?

Cricket economics.

It is a known fact that a lot of money is being pumped into the cricket matches by countries like India to shift the fortunes to their own side. Cash help them to influence the sources responsible to fix matches in all possible matters, from country, venue/places, dates, days, toss to the special favors for select players who are supposed to get awards or prizes, final result. Bribery plays very important role in such match fixings. The powerful cricket mafia is “entrusted” to conduct the courses of matches to secure the results according to the fixed matches. Mangers, coaches play second fiddles while the players try to play according to the “instructions”. They generally do not have too many choices. “Who’s Wicket” taking is an important feature as the 50s , 100s and 200s etc are and they important for the countries concerned, hence huge sum is assured by them along with other benefits and privileges in bi-lateral and multilateral trade.

Strongly criticizing at Melbourne the BCCI over its appeal against the one-Test ban on Gautam Gambhir, Cricket Australia (CA) today advised its Indian counterpart to use its financial powers more responsibly and in better ways. Indian opener Gambhir was banned for one-Test after he was found guilty of breaching an ICC code of conduct. But the BCCI appealed against the decision which was upheld by the appeals commissioner. CA chief executive James Sutherland criticized BCCI for challenging the ICC verdict on Gambhir's one-Test ban. ''The power that India has is connected a lot to financial contribution they make to the game,'' Sutherland said. ''Something like 70 per cent of cricket's revenue is generated out of India and to that end, it means that they have, in recent times, come to realize that with that they can influence more than perhaps they have done in the past. ''With that ability to influence obviously comes power, and as someone once told me, with wealth comes responsibility,'' Sutherland was quoted as saying by the Australian Associated Press.

Ungrateful India

Australians were seen as being as too choosy about Indian batsmen for “awarding’ 50s and 100s and more, while denying any runs to some. They decide whom to give 50s and 100s or 200s and did not let the select Indians, as per plan, leave the wicket without completing the set “record”. That is not good for cricket game. They are democrats and should have given every Indian player just only a few runs they deserve. Already they have shown they are too generous with Indians in previous occasions as well.

In the first test, Australia made fantastic total in the first innings but by underplaying the next innings, they voluntarily let the guests dismiss them and get a nice draw to appease the Indians. In the second Test, the Aussies allowed the host Indians to make very impressive innings and let themselves collapse altogether. The third match in Delhi, sensing the general view about a hidden match-fixing, they followed a different strategy, letting India score very high in the first innings while the Aussies almost reaching the target, but in the second innings they decided go for a draw. In the final one also similar strategy was followed. Australia was over-conscious about their sub-serving role in the tournament. That is game India expects and seeks from its strategic partner in joint military exercises. As a nucleriarized partner of the USA, Australia very little choices and has to oblige India.

But Indians are ungrateful to Aussies. They don’t thank them, let alone appreciate their cooperative pro-India actions. Indians are though, practical people who know the worth and value of money. Meanwhile, Australian team needs to be appreciated for their cooperative spirit playing against India hosts. Both Ponting (05) and Hussy (54) could be given an Indian government scholarship or a job or a coach post in due course, or even an award. Now Indians should let them play their real bating and fielding. India could use its ready cash to uplift the poor people and electorates, in stead of bribing for boosting self-importance.

An Observation: Modern cricketism

Of late the Indo-Australian cricket shows have been reduced to joint cricket exercises as the military shows. It is a known fact that India has the peculiar weakness of "toss" and the sentimental India always wants to “win" the toss and bat first. Australia perhaps appeased India most of the times.

World champions Australia showed only its anti-brilliance in India. In the final match it appeared that Aussies would end up disastrously without using even 10 overs to get out of the pavilion, but they cold score around 200 by throwing away bats as quickly as the cricket mafia indicated from the audience side. One does not know if offering 50s twice to Harbajn and Zaheer was a package plan or the visitors did that to make them as important as other “big4” players. But finally they showed to the India government that Harbajan and Zaheer are par with Tendulkar and Dhoni and Ganguli for “meritorious” awards and still better batsmen than former skipper Rahul Dravid whom they gave almost zero runs consecutively.

It appears, India has successfully employed US strategy of using Indian “terrorism” to coerce the “innocent” cricketers from Australia and hence the world cricket champions behave like little cats in front of Indian “lions”. Indian governments must be now getting cash awards to the Indian players while the president of India would gladly give away some more available awards and medals to her favorite players.

In conclusion, Indo-Australia has done enormous damage to cricket as a competitive sport and reduce the game into a mere joint cricket exercise for extra cash. Recent times, an impression has been created that two teams of trained thieves and frauds are playing cricket to manage the "sentimental" crowd of India, proving that cricket is not a game of gentlemen. To that extent they should be appreciated. But under the circumstances, the "records" set by any individual or team cannot be considered as authentic!!!

That is all, your honor!

The author is Delhi based Research Scholar in International Studies and can be reached at abdulruff_jnu@yahoo.com - Sri Lanka Guardian