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IPL Spot Fixing Scandal

Cevno

Hall of Fame Member
Don't think so.. The article you have linked has selectively used his quotes.. The cricinfo article seems a lot more clear and ambigious.
I have seen his interview on TV FFS on 2 different channels.

Ravi Sawant is Pawar's man, who contested against Sena backed Vengsarkar when Pawar had problems contesting due to his address.
 

honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
I have seen his interview on TV FFS on 2 different channels.

Ravi Sawant is Pawar's man, who contested against Sena backed Vengsarkar when Pawar had problems contesting due to his address.
well.. I guess we will juz have to wait and see.. One thing you seem to forget is Modi and Srini were Pawar's men too not that long ago.. :)
 

Cevno

Hall of Fame Member
IBNLive Realtime ‏@IBNLiveRealtime 2m

IPL: ICC warned BCCI about Meiyappan's links with bookies

IBNLive Realtime ‏@IBNLiveRealtime 3m

CNN-IBN accesses transcripts of conversation between Vindoo and Meiyappan

IBNLive Realtime ‏@IBNLiveRealtime 3m

Transcripts show Meiyappan telling Vindoo 'ICC has warned BCCI about me'

IBNLive Realtime ‏@IBNLiveRealtime 4m

ICC warning had come soon after IPL 6 started
 

Cevno

Hall of Fame Member
The Delhi Police is speaking to Rajasthan Royals player Siddharth Trivedi in connection with the IPL spot-fixing case. Trivedi has been made a prosecution witness in the case. Sources say Siddharth was offered bribe by bookies but he refused. This is being done to make the police case stronger. His deposition will help in making case stronger against the bookies as well as the players.

Another article -

Spot-fixing: Siddharth Trivedi to be made prosecution witness, cops say - The Times of India

Brave step by Sid Trivedi, if true.
 
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honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
I have no doubt these resignations are motivated but as I said earlier, I think NS' position is becoming untenable by the minute.. The rest may be as bad as him but he is the one leading the **** organization right now and he simply has to go.


But already it has come down to a very simple political powerplay. Lets see what other deals get brokered before the commission submits their "report"..
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
What the Indian fans and supporters need to understand is that the central issue is NOT Srinivasan, Gurunathan, CSK and the murky goings-on of the recently revealed stuff but the completely unacceptable manner in which cricket is being run in their country. It should be unacceptable in any country of the world but we in South Asia seem to have given up doing anything more than making symbolic noises every time the dirt creeps out from under the carpet, a bone or two plonks out of the glitzy, gold plated cup-boards, the stink of the rot overpowers the senses and the strong dose of room-freshners that are used by those responsible to numb our senses of smell.

The issue is wider, much more central and basic and we do great injustice to the game and to our own interests when we keep harping about the politics of the thieves when they fall out with each other. Irrespective of which side's dirt a fan tries to show up he does nothing more than open up the Pandora's box of a never-ending list of rotten ways in which our national game is being run and ruined by vested interests.

Our making proclamations about the fact, that "is hamaam mein sab nange hain" (everyone is naked in this pool), does nothing more than beg the central question which must be addressed by every Indian fan to himself/herself . . . "if I know this is so, what am I doing about it." Every time we talk and write, myself included, as to how our cops, politicians, former cricketers, bureaucrats, commentators, businessmen etc etc are crooked as a whole and, therefore by deductive logic, no one is worse than any alternative, we open ourselves to ridicule by the rest of the world which is looking on in part mirth, part disgust, part a feeling of "we told you so."

If all of us know there is a systemic cancer do we not, then, have a stake and a responsibility in finding what can we do about it.

To start with we have to get rid of all those who have been telling us "their is nothing wrong with the system." Anyone who says BCCI is great or is the best run sports body in the country and wishes other sports would have similar bodies talks utter and dangerous nonsense.

BCCI and what it stands for is the issue! And it needs to be completely and ruthlessly overhauled. It does not matter where we start or who we get rid of first. What matters is to stop tolerating this deep-rooted nexus between those who control the big- bucks and those who are delighted to get crumbs/pieces of the pie . . .irrespective.

Pawar is as bad for Indian cricket as Dalmiya or Srinivasan or the long gone and barely lamented , AC Muthiah who, incidentally introduced Srinivasan to Indian cricket administration. Lets get rid of all of them! BUT - if we can't get rid of all at the same time, why should we have an issue with getting rid of one at a time. Which one? I don't care? Do you?

Of course Shirke and Jagdale are only leaving the sinking ship. Why should we care if they are rats? Good riddance all the same. That does not stop me from wanting the fattest and the biggest of the rats to quit as well. Which one first doesn't matter.

All that matters is that these rats are not going to save the ship by staying on it. They need to go before any salvage operation can even be conceptualised let alone launched. The question of even one of them to be a part of any new dispensation should not even be considered !

I refuse to believe that there are no good people around with interest of the game at heart and ideas on how to set things right but those of them in public view (and within ear-shot) are still very few. There numbers won't increase, however, till there isn't a clear sign that the present coterie, irrespective of whether it is united or divided, is finished.

Forget the likes of Gavaskar and Shastri, they have long ago decided not just which side is the toast buttered but that buttered toast is what they want to live the rest of their lives on. However, even if we want the Kumble's and the Dravids and others like them to come forward more aggressively to help change things, we should not expect this to happen till they are sure the present lot is not coming back.

Nothing will improve/ change if the pressure is not kept up on Srinivasan and whosoever supports him to get out of the game for good. All we need to remember, however, is that this will only be a starting point. Finally each and everyone of those involved with the running, continuance and perpetuation of this system will have to be kissed goodbye. Be prepared to do that even if that unholy list includes some of your favourite legends of the game, favourite commentators, businessmen, politicians from parties you support, people from your state and so on and so forth.

If we take sides and choose between crooks then crooks is all we will get.

To end this let me quote(not verbatim but in approximation) from one of my favourite part part time politicians - Arun Shourie.

"People must vote. If every candidate in the fray is undeserving people must still go to the polling station, scratch out the names of all the candidates and scrawl on the ballot paper in bold letter . . . NONE OF THE ABOVE"​

Choosing the least of the crooks is a terrible option and deciding not to vote is worse. It is indifference to your own fate and future
 
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SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Two three years back I had written a longish feature for CW on the problems with IPL. I did not eventually send it to James for printing since I was advised by some friends that it was too strongly worded and some of it could be considered libel. That was written when people and most of the establishment were still defending Modi although his ouster happened not too long after that.

Today, if I was to fish out that piece, and posted it here, it would amount to taking 3000 words to say "I told you so!" So prophetic has almost all of it turned out that except for the friend who read the piece and advised me against sending it, most may wonder if it was written much more recently and with the help of hindsight.

I mention this here not to extoll my 'long distance' vision but to warn my friends amongst Indian fans that the future will once again force our eyes open to what we would like to pretend is a bad dream which will eventually go away.

We need to wake up to the mess.

By the way, the last thing we, Indian cricket lovers, need is to have an Indian as ICC president.

If India has people who can run the game effectively and professionally we need them to do it in India first. Moreover, for the deep rot our cricket management in the country is, the last thing we need is the power that the position accords to us which enables us to steamroll public and world opinion - for this power that our board holds is one of the key elements leading to its arrogance and fascist tendencies.

Taking a backseat in world cricket management and concentrating on bringing cricket administration to the level if the best in the world should be a priority.
 

silentstriker

The Wheel is Forever
I posted this on your facebook SJS, but I agree. We need an actual professional structure not a bunch of amateur politicians running and catering only to their own little fiefdoms. The millions of 'ceremonial' positions annoy me to no end. How can you have an organization worth tens of billions of dollars run by a bunch of part time amateurs? In any other company, the shareholders wouldn't stand for it for a second...
 
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bagapath

International Captain
Today, if I was to fish out that piece, and posted it here, it would amount to taking 3000 words to say "I told you so!" So prophetic has almost all of it turned out that except for the friend who read the piece and advised me against sending it, most may wonder if it was written much more recently and with the help of hindsight.
if you dont want to post it as a full fledged article then please email it to me at bagapath@gmail.com
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Indian fans need to cheer the departure of Shukls which is very different from applauding him for it. Lets hope that Indian cricket has sen the last of this man. Wonder if the Prime Minister's statements on the state of affairs in cricket administration forced Shukla's hand.
 

bagapath

International Captain
Has Ravi Shastri commented on how this is all down to English jealousy yet?
Actually I expect shastri to be the more honourable among the ex test players in the administration. His refusing to be part of the BCCI committee was a good move, making it difficult for srini to convince everyone that the said committee would perform with total freedom. I assumed shastri didn't agree to be part of it coz he knew it would be a farce. Jagadele's subsequent resignation proved that. Also, after watching the tehelka expose on match fixing in the 90s I am convinced shastri was a clean cricketer.

I also expect IPL to be back next year - unlike the Stanford games floated by ECB which symbolised english greed and spinelessness (just like IPL symbolises Indian corruption) and which is buried forever. Since IPL is a much much richer and more successful league, and since it is still alive, there is a case to suspect the English hand in all this. :p:p:p
 

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Do not be fooled by the resignations and the drama that may unfold at the emergency meeting. Be very clear that NO ONE is interested in solving the problem. This is damage control with a different set of goals.

Ever since the s*** hit the ceiling, everyone involved with Indian cricket was pretending that nothing had happened and their was the air was fresh as usual. Now that the stink is refusing to go away and with political bosses of both ruling and major opposition parties have made it clear they do now wish to be seen to have smelly clothes, everyone is desperately trying to distance themselves from the filth and trying to pretend that if we get rid of one person, "skunk-designate", everything will be fine and usual room-fresheners can be employed to bring it to business as usual.

One hopes and prays that the public and the media do not get taken in. Surely deals will be struck at the meeting as TS will be eased out. He can surely see the writing on the wall and if he acts stupid, he may get dumped with a less than gentle bump.

Sashank Manohar may be an honourable man. Maybe more honorable than the others around him which isn't such a high bar anyway. But assuming he is what everyone is making him out to be (I am not saying he isn't) the rats abandoning the ship can not be allowed to use token changes to make the public believe that order is restored. No way !

Systemic rots can not be set right by change in a few personnel, even if it includes the top man. Much more needs to be done. If TS goes it is only a minor though necessary step. It is clear that the public that loves IPL and T20 and wants to believe it is the greatest thing India has achieved in the last millenium, may be so worried about the risk of the 'death-knell' of IPL and they would be only too keen to breathe a premature sigh of relief and push shout "play!"

That would be folly.

This churning of the Indian cricket administration must be taken to its ultimate resolution for the opportunity may not come again. The sky is not going to fall if there was no IPL in 2014 and the two years from now to 2015 are used strengthen the administration of the game in the country.

I mentioned yesterday that there are people who love the game and have ideas. One such is Bangalore based Ramachandra Guha - cricket historian besides other things. He had some interesting things to say today and I produce some excerpts. Mr Guha was roped in by a Franchisee but he soon made it clear that this did not interest him. In this piece he uses pretty strong language against the Franchisees even as a whole . . .

The Serpent in the Garden

Six years ago, however, a new club and a new format entered my city and my life. I was faced with a complicated decision - should I now add a fresh allegiance, to the Royal Challengers Bangalore?

I decided I would not, mostly because I disliked the promoter. In cricketing terms, Vijay Mallya was the Other of Duraiswami. He had never played cricket, nor watched much cricket either. He had no knowledge of its techniques or its history. He had come into the sport on a massive ego trip, to partake of the glamour and celebrity he saw associated with it. He would buy his way into Indian cricket. And so he did.

It was principally because Mallya was so lacking in the dedicated selflessness of the cricketing coaches and managers I knew, that I decided the RCB would not be my team. So, although I am a member of the Karnataka State Cricket Association and have free entry into its grounds, I continued to reserve that privilege for Ranji Trophy and Test matches alone.​

.........

I wonder what Chinnaswamy would have made of his grasping, greedy, successors as presidents of BCCI. I wonder, too, what he would have made of a man who can't pay his own employees having a free run of the stadium that Chinnaswamy so lovingly built. This past April, the Bengaluru edition of the Hindu carried a front-page story on an summons that the Special Court for Economic Offences had issued to Mallya, who owed the Income Tax Department some Rs75 crores, or about $13.3 million, which he had not paid despite repeated reminders. The police, often waiving the rules for the powerful, told the court that they were too busy to execute the summons.

But let me not single out Mallya here. The truth is that almost all the owners of IPL teams (seven out of nine, by one estimate) are being investigated by one government agency or another, in one country or another, for economic offences of one kind or another. Since this is a shady operation run by shady characters, Indian companies known for their professionalism, entrepreneurial innovation, and technical excellence have stayed away from the IPL altogether. Here is a question for those who still think the tournament is worth defending - why is it that companies like the Tatas, the Mahindras, or Infosys have not promoted an IPL team?

To this writer, that the IPL was corrupt from top to bottom (and side to side) was clear from the start - which is why I have never exercised my right of free entry for its matches in Bengaluru. But as I watched the tournament unfold, I saw also that it was deeply divisive in a sociological sense. It was a tamasha for the rich and upwardly mobile living in the cities of southern and western India. Rural and small town India were largely left out, as were the most populous states. That Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, both of whom have excellent Ranji Trophy records, had no IPL team between them, while Maharashtra had two, was symptomatic of the tournament's identification with the powerful and the moneyed. The entire structure of the IPL was a denial of the rights of equal citizenship that a truly "national" game should promote.

The IPL is representative of the worst sides of Indian capitalism and Indian society. Corrupt and cronyist, it has also promoted chamchagiri (sycophancy) and compliance. The behaviour of Messrs Lalit Modi and N Srinivasan cannot shock or surprise me, but I have been distressed at the way in which some respected cricket commmentators have become apologists for the IPL and its management. Theirs is a betrayal that has wounded the image of cricket in India, and beyond.

........

What is to be done now? The vested interests are asking for such token measures as the legalisation of betting and the resignation of the odd official. In truth, far more radical steps are called for. The IPL should be disbanded. The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, played between state sides, should be upgraded, making it the flagship Twenty20 tournament in the country. Then the clubs and state associations that have run our domestic game reasonably well for the past 80 years would be given back their authority, and the crooks and the moneybags turfed out altogether.

Even now, in every city and town in India, there are selfless cricket coaches and administrators active, nurturing young talent, supervising matches and leagues. The way to save Indian cricket is to allow these modern-day equivalents of Duraiswami and M Chinnaswamy to take charge once more.​

Source : ESPN Cricinfo
 
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