IPL spot-fixing: Is Indian cricket's gen-next learning any lessons?

“In the last two weeks, that have seen a huge uproar over spot-fixing in the IPL, my academy has taken 75 new admissions,” says John Manoj, coach at the well-known St Johns Cricket Academy in Hyderabad. The academy that has produced players like VVS Laxman and more recently, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Hanuma Vihari, is the gurukul for 530 cricketers. And it is proof that the taint on the IPL has not made much of a difference beyond the uproar in the media, Manoj says most parents see playing in the IPL as the ultimate goal for their children. “Many of them tell me that if my son plays IPL, that is fine. He need not be a Test cricketer or even play for Hyderabad Ranji team. IPL today means more than the India cap,’’ says Manoj. [caption id=“attachment_815285” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Ajit Chandila is alleged to have taken money from bookies. BCCI[/caption] That is precisely the point BCCI president N Srinivasan made in the multiple interview he gave TV channels from the cool confines of Kodaikanal following Sreesanth’s arrest - that despite the scandal, people were still flocking to the stadia to watch the matches. What the BCCI and the IPL management does not realise is that it is injecting steroids into cricket in India to make it look powerful and stronger and run faster. But in the bargain, it is eating away at the vitals of cricket from the inside. In the garb of serving cricket as entertainment, it has pimped the game to bookies and fixers who have filled its veins with black money and sleaze to violate the purity of what was once called the gentleman’s game. The skeletons tumbling out of the cupboard this season are a pointer to the rot that runs deep and it is insulting to dismiss the concerns with a “kuch to log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna”. Given that IPL today in popular perception means far more money, fame, recognition and glamour than slugging it out in the white flannels in Ranji, Duleep or the under-22s, it is no surprise that young boys are being encouraged at home to make it big in the world of jamping japang jampak jampak. They are aware that not every cricketer becomes a Sachin Tendulkar or an MS Dhoni but they would be quite content if they could get to rub shoulders with the stars by being part of an IPL franchise But former cricketers see the warning signals in youngsters pursuing IPL-specific goals. They point to Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan who are alleged to have used the IPL as a platform to make money by hook or by crook. “I am Chandila. I see next to me a Suresh Raina driving a Porsche,” explains a former Hyderabad Ranji team captain. “I naturally think this is the life I want to lead. But I am a fringe player, with no hope of making it big. My shelf life is not long either. Luckily I am part of an IPL team and I get to attend IPL parties where I am exposed to women, glamour and big money. I aspire for the same and become a sitting duck for bookies to play on my weakness.” The parents may not realise it but with big names getting into trouble, IPL as a property has certainly taken a hit. The league was never just about cricket anyway. It was more about fun for three hours along with good money, cheergirls and music. But the added element of betting, gambling and fixing has lent it a criminal edge. Actually it should not have surprised anyone because with the kind of money the IPL attracted, it was but obvious it would also attract the wrong kind of people. The fear is the effect the negative energy around the IPL could have on mainstream cricket. Sponsors could feel jittery about being associated with cricket because the alleged involvement of a Sreesanth has shown that even India players can be bought. It is only thanks to the dignity displayed by players like Rahul Dravid that cricketers across the board have not been maligned. During IPL 3, an investigation had revealed the betting racket to be in the range of Rs 12000 crore. This season, it is estimated to be Rs 40000 crores plus. Sleuths who have worked on the case say fixing takes place in 40% of bets to ensure bookies make huge profits. Which is why it is juvenile to imagine that the spot-fixing malaise would have been restricted to just three players of Rajasthan Royals. One of the association’s officials who attended the BCCI’s emergency meeting after the Sreesanth arrest revealed that the powerful chieftains of the Board were in a hurry to get the Rajasthan Royals management to file a complaint against the three players. He now wonders if Srinivasan will ask Chennai Super Kings to file a similar complaint against his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, who was hurriedly demoted from being the Team Prinicipal of CSK to just a honorary member of the team, after the Mumbai police summoned him. It is important for the BCCI to realise that much of the pond is dirty and it is not just because of “three dirty cricketers”. The cricket-loving people of India have been cheated and expect remedial steps to be taken forthwith. If Team CSK has brought disrepute to the IPL, it has to be scrapped for flouting the rules. Wouldn’t Srinivasan have cracked the whip if any of the other teams had done so? Unfortunately, what India is witness to is a ganging up by the anti-Srinivasan lobby within the BCCI. None of them is any better than the incumbent, if not worse. If the levers of power are only going to shift from one set of politicians and crony capitalists to another, there is little hope for this brand called IPL.