Today, when I learned about the release of Mohammad Amir from a British jail, memories of the 2010 spot fixing scandal resurfaced in my mind. I couldn't resist to think about Amir's return to international cricket. Even though I think that criminals should be punished fully for their actions, but my heart has a soft corner for Amir because of his young age and admirable talent. Majority of people deserve a second chance, and in my opinion no one more so than young Amir.
Well all this aside, today, I am more interested in commenting on the positive aspects of the spot-fixing scandal. Unlike many Pakistani cricket fans, I have always considered the spot fixing scandal a blessing in disguise for Pakistan cricket. My reasoning is pretty simple and well apparent: the rise in performance of the green team since the scandal. Since the disastrous tour of England in 2010, Pakistan have only lost one test, made it to the semifinal of the ODI World Cup and continues to ascend in ICC cricket rankings in tests and ODIs. Not only that, but the phrase "the most consistent thing about Pakistan cricket is it's inconsistency" is no longer valid. We have not only been consistently good against below par teams, but we have also proven ourselves against top-ranked teams like South Africa, Sri Lanka and England away from home. One may argue that UAE is Pakistan's "home" away from home, but don't forget commendable performances in West Indies, New Zealand, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. Cricket pundits may attribute good results to Misbah's astute leadership and team unity; however, in my opinion, the spot fixing scandal is equally responsible. If there were no spot-fixing scandal, Misbah might not have returned to the team, let alone become a captain. Moreover, after the scandal, it became apparent to players that their actions can speak louder than their words, which not only united them but also brought the best out of them. Hence, instead of accusing foreign elements and now defunct News Of The World of conspiring against Pakistan cricket, we, especially the Pakistani cricket fans, should be thankful to them.
yeap!!!....spot fixing scandal is a blessing 4 pak team..but amir was not that much "young" that he wasn't aware of consequences, his greed was the reason of fixing not his age....but he is a good player ICC should give him a chance..!!!PCB might give him a chance now ...they have substitute players...who r performing quite well...
ReplyDeleteMy point was not that Amir was not aware of consequences because of his young age or greed was not a factor, instead I am trying to say that he made a mistake at a young age and for that he should be given a second chance to prove himself. When I say he should be given a chance, I don't mean that he should be brought in the team, the day after his ban over. But he should be given an opportunity to make a comeback.
ReplyDeletepeople r quite sure that yeap after a short while he'll b given a chance!!!....some people think that it was a conspiracy against amir n pak team....as he is a talented player so in order to weakened team they created the whole scene.... ....!!!!regardless of what will happen n what not......pak team is performing quite well...n that's gr8!!!
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