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| April 24, 2000 | ||
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 Cricket
in many ways represents the soul of India. It is one of our unifying
factors, cutting across economic, class and religious barriers. And ever
since the spread of one-day matches and television, cricket has become a
national obsession. With that has come big money: Rs 25,000 crore ($6
billion) worldwide in ad revenues, endorsements, game payments, broadcast
rights, etc. Most of it comes from the subcontinent. Little wonder that
cricket's scandals originate here. In case you've forgotten, cricket was
once called the game of gentlemen. It symbolised fairness, honesty and,
above all, a certain innocence. But as the screaming newspaper headlines
and television stories will tell you, we are at the end of that innocence.
The knock seems even harder with the fall of people like Hansie Cronje,
who seemed to epitomise cricket's old ways. This scandal has meant that
cricketers are now gaining the dubious reputation that was once the
preserve of politicians, whom you rarely give the benefit of the doubt.
When you watch a game, you will always wonder what's real, what's faked.
As for cricket's administration, especially in India, it is moribund and
bumbling, unable or unwilling to act as cricketing heroes stoop low.
Because the reasons for the emasculation of cricket's soul reaches across society, we put together a team of correspondents and editors who between them cover crime, politics, business and sports. Together, they delved into every aspect of this week's admittedly depressing cover story, including digging up exclusive extracts from the Chandrachud report on match-fixing, suppressed for three years. "It's a huge setback, with far-reaching consequences for the game," says a crestfallen Associate Editor Rohit Brijnath, who wrote the main story and is a cricket buff. Undoubtedly, cricket, our lives and the Indian soul will not be the same again. .
(Aroon Purie) |
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