‘Spot fixer Amir should have been banned for life’: Graeme Swann

Apr 6, 2019 at 2:17 PM

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‘Spot fixer Amir should have been banned for life’: Graeme Swann

Graeme Swann, who played the 2010 Lord’s Test against Pakistan, recounted the scenario of that match fixing in his blog for The Sun. Swann said he and Stuart Board found everybody was reading the News of the World in the dressing room. The news of three Pakistani players’ spot-fixing saga broke out.

Swann is not happy as the bowler who once cheated the game is allowed to come back again and play at the Lord’s where he fixed a moment in the game. “This is a man who crushed the morality of the game. And yet he is being allowed back to play at the Home of Cricket,” Swann bemoaned.

Swann said, no doubt Amir is an exceptional bowling talent, but he should not play cricket now after the spot-fixing scandal at the Lord’s. “Amir should have been banned for life for his part in the corruption scandal of 2010, Swann said. He further added, “He is an incredibly talented bowler — he took 6-84 in that infamous Lord’s Test six years ago — but that does not excuse what he did. No matter how good you are, if you sell your soul for 30 pieces of silver, you have to pay the consequences.”

Swann also said that he heard the argument about Amir’s humble background and like other criminals, after serving the prescribed time in the jail, he is allowed to play cricket.  But Swann has his own opinion. He said, “But there is a bigger picture here. If you want to protect the integrity of the game, help cricket grow and inspire youngsters, there can be no place for corrupt players. You must have proper deterrents.”

He also took the example of Rugby where the World Rugby bans the player for life if he hit the player while playing the match. “In rugby, if you hit a referee, you’re banned for life. There’s no comeback from that. No argument or tribunal, you’re gone.”

But Amir received the support from people as he was 18 years old, grew up in a humble background so he should be allowed to play cricket and earn money for his livelihood. Swann in his blog also wrote, “He learnt to obey his elders, Amir was an easily led, innocent victim, lured by his captain, Salman Butt, and a slippery agent.”

But Swann does not agree, he said, “it doesn’t wash. If you’re 18 and commit a crime, you go to prison.”

Swann said Amir could have done other job after taking proper education instead of playing cricket. According to the spinner, “Sure, people make mistakes but, if cricket is going to allow a corrupt player back after five years and earn a lot of money for the next ten years, that isn’t setting the right example.”

Swann added, “I believe Amir could have been given a job educating youngsters, warning them of the dangers of corruption and telling them not to make the same mistakes he did. That could have been his way back into the game.”

He also criticized ICC for mismanaging the whistleblower as often the player who reports to the Anti-Corruption department of the ICC has to face the embarrassing and painful situation.

Swann gave the instance of former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, who reported ICC about Chris Cairns’s illegal activities, but Cairns is now freed as a result McCullum faced an awkward situation.  ICC should always hide the whistleblower.

“Brendon McCullum went to the anti-corruption authorities with information and was then called to give evidence at the trial of Chris Cairns. He had to fly across the world and was given an uncomfortable time on the witness stand — all for trying to do the right thing.”

“Players are always being told to report anything suspicious, in effect to grass up their mates. But the experiences of McCullum will hardly encourage others to come forward,” Swann stated.

H also raised a question about ICC  as the board allowed Amir to play international cricket, but Luo Vincent who admitted his misdeed to the ICC was not allowed  to play cricket and deprived of watching his children’s practice.

“When you look at the way the former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent has been eviscerated for coming clean and trying to do the right thing, the soft treatment of Amir seems even more wrong.

Sure, Vincent did some bad things. He tried to fix cricket matches. In the end, however, he admitted everything.

Now he has been banned for life, he’s not allowed at cricket grounds or even to watch his kids play,” Swann bellowed.

Swann also talked about the scenario of the 2010 Lord’s Test. After the news of spot-fixing broke out, everybody was reading the news of the world in the dressing room, Swann said, “there was the talk of not playing.”

However, “When we started warming up, the Pakistan players were nowhere to be seen.”

“Their management were also reading the papers with the front page headlines, scratching their heads and not having a clue what to do.

“We won the match by an innings and 225 runs and I took five wickets in Pakistan’s second innings. I had Butt lbw and he reviewed the decision.

“Normally, we’d be in a huddle, chatting excitedly, but there was none of that. Everyone was disgusted, not interested in the game. We didn’t even have a celebratory beer afterwards.

“Jonathan Trott and Stuart Broad put on 332 for the eighth wicket in England’s first innings. I was out for a duck and I was chatting to Broady after the game,” Swann jogged the memory.

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