A former cricket captain held a huge show in Lahore, one which was termed to be a potential game-changer as it focused on eradicating corruption. Four days later though, another former captain, Salman Butt, along with his partner in crime, Mohammad Asif made the heads of an entire nation hang in shame as the duo was convicted on charges of corruption and fraud. One hopes this episode is the darkest moment in the countrys history of the sport that is loved the most, as even the ever-resilient Pakistan cricket cannot afford to descend any deeper. It is an almost impossible task to decode the tough process (or the lack thereof) of the trio involved that led them do what they did. Lack of moral values is surely one factor and there should be no sympathies even for teenaged Mohammad Aamer, who had earlier confessed to his crime. There are many among us whose hearts are going out to Aamer, offering a consolation argument that he just fell in the trap set by senior players and was under immense pressure to do what he did. But this sympathy emanates from the realization that the country has lost a highly promising fast bowler; not from any doubts over the evidence against him. Some would argue that the players often come from poor, humble backgrounds and are not well-schooled, which is why they end up doing such acts. While this may be true to a certain extent; cricketers and other sportsmen across the world do not always hail from Ivy League backgrounds, but standards of ethical conduct are universal. In fact, the sorry state of affairs exposed by this scandal is another harsh reminder of the level of moral deprivation rampant in our society. What this case has also highlighted is that the game is yet to be cleaned, as it took a sting operation from a (now defunct) British tabloid to expose corrupt practices in sport. And all this happened under the self-proclaimed vigilant eyes of the ICC Anti Corruption Unit and the PCB. There is no doubt that this verdict will act as a deterrent against unfair practices in the gentlemans sport", provided that the cricket boards including PCB draw a valuable lesson from the damning episode. It is a known fact amongst the local cricket fraternity that the domestic cricket setup in Pakistan is corrupt to the core. Betting and fixing is a norm in the local circuit, which ranges from players fixing games or parts of it, to umpires accepting bribes to favour a particular team. Unfortunately, the grey area has largely remained unaddressed, which is why the disease has grown into a cancerous tumour. The players that make it to the top level are well aware of the corrupt practices - so in essence they already have an exposure to that world. And those with weak morals willingly accept it on the bigger stage, as there is more money to be made. Eventually, it is the individuals own set of values that matters the most - yet, the disease can be prevented from spreading further if it is checked at the grass roots level. Thankfully, Pakistani cricket has shown commendable resilience in the past decade and is still growing. There is certainly light at the end of the tunnel; but it is high time that the cricketing authorities wake up, accept their shortcomings, share the blame and do whatever it takes to ensure this never happens again. Pakistan is in danger of having much graver consequences should such a thing ever happen again. Even a ban on the Pakistani cricket team from international cricket is not entirely unfathomable, if similar scandals emerge again. Certainly, the cricket world cannot afford to lose the charm of Pakistan cricket or another Mohammad Aamer.
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