Presented By:: Chaitali Maskar (13123)

Presented By :
CHAITALI MASKAR
(13123)
An Attempt To Define
Instances where an individual player or group of

players received money individually/collectively to
underperform;
“Match fixing should be defined something like

this- "match fixing is an instance where a player(s)
or official(s), directly or indirectly do/does an
undue favour to somebody including himself by
harming the basic spirit of the game.”
1999-2000 India-South Africa
match fixing scandal
Wessel Johannes
Betting controversies in cricket:
On 7 April 2000, Delhi police revealed they had a

recording of a conversation between Cronje and Sanjay Chawla,
a representative of an Indian betting syndicate, over match-
fixing allegations. Three other players: Herschelle Gibbs, Nicky
Boje and Pieter Strydom were also implicated. On 8 April 2000
the UCBSA (United Cricket Board of South Africa) denied that
any of their players were involved in match-fixing, Cronje said
"the allegations are completely without substance". However, on
April 11 Cronje was sacked as captain after confessing to Ali
Bacher that he had not been "entirely honest". He admitted
accepting between $10,000 and $15,000 from a London-based
bookmaker for 'forecasting' results, not match fixing, during the
recent one day series in India.
On 7 June the King Commission began. The
following day Gibbs revealed that Cronje had
offered him $15,000 to score less than 20 runs in
the 5th ODI at Nagpur. He also admitted another
offer of $15,000 to Henry Williams to concede
more than 50 runs in that same match. Gibbs
scored 74 off 53 balls and Williams injured his
shoulder and couldn't complete his second over so
neither received the $15,000. Off-spinner Derek
Crookes, who was also a witness, admitted being
surprised to open the bowling at Nagpur.
On 15 June Cronje released a statement that
revealed all his contact with bookmakers. In 1996
during the third Test in Kanpur, he was introduced
to Mukesh Gupta by Mohammad Azharuddin.
Gupta gave Cronje $30,000 to persuade the South
Africans to lose wickets on the last day to lose the
match, South Africa were 127/5 chasing 460,
Cronje was already out and spoke to no other
players "I had received money for doing nothing".
During the return tour Cronje received $50,000
from Gupta for team information.
In the 2000 Centurion Test Marlon Aronstam
contacted him offering Rs. 5, 00, 000 for the charity of
his choice together with a gift if Cronje declared and
made a game of it. He also admitted asking Pieter
Strydom to place a R50 bet on South Africa to win for
him. After the match Aronstam visited Cronje giving him
two amounts of money (R30, 000 and R20, 000) together
with a leather jacket. The promised R500, 000 did not
materialise. Before the one-day series Cronje received
repeated calls from "Sanjay" asking to fix a match,
Cronje gave him the names of Gibbs, Strydom and Boje
to try to get rid of him.
But Cronje was offered $140,000 for the fifth
ODI if Gibbs scored under 20, Williams went for
more than 50 and South Africa scored around 270.
On 28 August Gibbs and Williams were
suspended from playing international cricket for 6
months. Gibbs was also fined R60, 000 and Williams
R10, 000, while Strydom received no punishment.
On 11 October Cronje was banned from playing
or coaching cricket for life. He challenged his life ban
in September 2001 but on 17 October 2001 his
application was dismissed.
On 1 June 2002 Cronje's scheduled flight home
from Johannesburg to George had been grounded so
instead he hitched a ride as the only passenger on a
passenger aircraft in a Hawker Siddeley HS 748
turboprop aircraft. Near George airport, the pilots
lost visibility in cloud, and were unable to land,
partly due to unserviceable navigational equipment.
While circling, the plane crashed into the Outeniqua
mountains northeast of the airport. Cronje, aged 32,
and the two pilots were killed instantly.
Let us Rebuild the Reputation of
cricket:
Where to start?
This rebuilding process has to start with the
unraveling of all the damage that has already been caused
to the game by match fixing in different countries. It
should then identify remedies and develop a firm plan of
action for undoing the damage.
Betting Vs Match Fixing :-
For most, betting per-se is not as much the cause of
concern as “Match Fixing". Since betting nature is too
deeply ingrained in the human nature, it is natural that an
interesting game such as Cricket becomes a target of
betting.
Cricket Boards are Unreliable
One of the positive outcomes of the Cronje
episode is that the matter is now in the hands of the
law enforcing authorities in India and is beyond the
reach of the manipulative hands of the Cricket board
officials. In all previous episodes of betting including
self admissions of Dennis Lillee, Rodney Marsh,
Shane Warne and Mark Waugh as also the exposes
made by Rashid Lateef and Manoj Prabhakar, accusing
Wasim Akram and Azaruddin, the respective Cricket
Boards have been engaged in cover up operations.
Even though Mr I.S. Bindra, the former
chairman of the Board of Control of Cricket in India
himself has confirmed that many cases of match
fixing have been officially reported, the Indian board
has not shown any inclination to unearth the truth.
The ICC, of which Mr Sanjay Dalmiya is the
chairman, is also aware of the match fixing
allegations in the past but again has chosen to
remain quiet.
Let an Independent Enquiry bear them all :
It is therefore necessary for another
independent enquiry first in India and then in
every cricket playing country, to expose every
player or official who may be involved in match
fixing. Such enquiries are required to be
conducted, by the governments of the countries
involved and should cover the Board officials and
the ICC too.
Plan of Preventive Action:
Prevention of the match fixing menace will have to
work on two fronts. Firstly, there should be a strong
deterrent for players so that they keep away from such
malpractice. Secondly, there should be a recognition of the
positive contribution by players who by their action uphold
the tradition of the Cricket as a "Gentleman’s Game". As a
deterrent, the punishment for any proven guilt should be a
total ban on the player and freezing of all his future dues
from the Cricket Board.
Once the impact of the above reward system sinks in,
players would compete with each other to be the
ambassadors of the gentleman’s game both on and off the
field.
On the other hand, those who uphold the
traditions of the game both on and off the field, or
those who show exemplary courage in bringing
match fixers to book should be rewarded with
recognition "Gentleman Cricketer of the Year". There
is a need to amend present law to bring 'match fixing'
under crime. This should restore the game to its old
time glory as the Genteman’s game.
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Instances where an individual player or group of

“Match fixing should be defined something like

On 7 April 2000, Delhi police revealed they had a

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