The game of cricket, which is sometimes said to as a gentleman’s game, has seen its share of scandals throughout the years. The sport has had a number of controversial incidents that have shocked both fans and commentators, including match-fixing scandals, umpiring disputes, and player behaviour problems. In this piece, we explore some of the most significant disputes in cricket history that have shaken the core of the sport.
Match-fixing scandals
Match-fixing has for a long time been rife in cricket, it as the act of persuading a game to a certain terminal to favor financial gain. It is a vice that encompasses conspiracies carried either by players, referees, or other substandard bodies to manipulate the game in as much as they want to determine the result, scoreline or specific points of the match.
Background of match-fixing in the cricket
However, match-fixing only started being well aired in the 1990s when many athletes were found to have engaged in match fixing. This controversy affected the image of the cricket adversely and made the cricket authorities concerned start searching doctoring.
Being one of the most prominent sports globally, a number of match-fixing scandals have occurred in the history of cricket.
Another unfortunate scandal was registered in 2000 when South African cricket team captain Hansie Cronje admitted receiving money from bookmakers in excess of changing the results of the matches. Later on after this revelation, Cronje was later banned for life playing the game of cricket.
Ball-tampering incidents
Ball-tampering refers to the prohibited act of altering the state of cricket ball to the advantage of a particular side of the game. The common ways used in ball-tampering include using foreign items to scratch or roughen one side of the ball in order to achieve swing or the seam movement.
Ten practical examples of tactics that are banned for changing the condition of the cricket ball
Cricket authorities consider altering the ball a serious offense since it undermines the sport’s fair play. Any team that will be caught in the act of altering the ball in any way will be given a raw deal in the form of fines, suspension in some games, and a lot of negative publicity.
Notable ball-tampering controversies
Ball tampering scandal was in the lime light during the Test match between South Africa and Australia in the year 2018. Aussie cricket cricketers David Warner, Steve Smith and new comer Cameron Bancroft were filmed covering the ball with sandpaper with the intention of changing it’s condition. It led the players, who was involved, to prolong their suspensions and also sparked a lot of negative reactions from the cricket fraternity.
Umpiring controversies
In cricket, umpires are important because their role is to ensure such that all players adhere to the set rules of the game. Washington does not correspond to other towns perfectly, and sometimes it turns out that they make decisions that lead to controversy and disputes.
List of coments to be made about umpires in cricket
Some of the decisions that umpires are mandated to make are regarding the deliveries, dismissals, and the LBW appeals. They may influence match outcomes to a large extent.
Officiating that has attracted controversy
The match between England and New Zealand that was held in the tournament final of the 2019 Cricket World Cup was accompanied by one of the most debatable decisions of the umpires. New Zealand team committed a fielding error and as a result, instead of allocating five runs the last over for England was given six runs. The choice was rather crucial because England won the game and took the trophy home and the impartiality of the umpires was debated.
Player behavior controversies
It can also be said that cricket goes far beyond the playing field; it’s the behavior that takes place off the field that defines how people look at the sport. Regrettably, there has been some miscreant actions of some players that has thrown the cricket sport into a bad light.
Offenses committed with the help and on the territory of the playing field as well as the violations carried out beyond the athletic arena
It is sad that several cricket players have been involved in scandals due to what they do on the field as well as what they do in their spare time. Such incidents affect not only the image of the particular player, this particular sport, this particular team, but the whole spectrum of sports in general.
Effect of behavioural issues of players on the game
It was observed that controversies concerning player behavior act as the precursor to consequences, which entail the cancellation of sponsorships, bans on players’ ability to occasionally compete internationally for their country, and dry of team morale. They can also tarnish the image of the game and people’s trust in the organizations such as the one associated with cricketing.
Governance scandals
Cricket has witnessed issues of governance, which have raised issues to do with the integrity of the governing structures in cricket, besides controversies on the ground.
Analyzing of the problems of governance in cricket
There are two major authorities that manage cricket; these are the International Cricket Council (ICC) and national cricket boards. However, criticism has been directed to the manner different organizations have dealt with a number of issues for instance nepotism, corruption, and lack of accountability among others.
High-profile governance scandals
The crme de la crime in the world of sports was the 2013 conflict of interest case involving N. Srinivasan, the president of BCCI, or to be specific, the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The BCCI soon found itself under an enormous amount of pressure in order to reform due to the scandal and there arose severe questions over the organization’s governance processes.
Conclusion
match-fixing, ball-tampering, governance issues and many more have not only tested the managerial capabilities of the sport but have also been a part of cricketing history. However, what will guarantee the existence of the sport in the single betting shops is the capacity of the sport to learn from the mistakes it has made and implemented changes.
FAQs
Explaining what cricket match-fixing means out involves identifying the major elements or components of match-fixing in cricket.
Due to your inquiry, match-fixing is defined as the act of manipulating the outcome of a cricket match in an attempt to gain some monetary reward.
Why is it that manipulation of balls is unlawful?
Due to the fact that ball-tampering renders the team that is doing the tampering with an unfair advantage over the opposing team, ball tampering is prohibited.
How does the controversities arising from the umpiring decisions affect the game?
Officiating can influence an outcome of a game and create debate on how biased or unbiased an official’s decisions may be.
Of course, it is possible to list several player behavior incidents that come to mind.
That is why some of the of behaviors that have been exhibited by the players include verbal confrontations with other players and participation in unlawful conducts.
The key question that one is likely to ask is, why does cricket governance controversies matter?
Cricketing governance scandals shake the popula’s confidence in cricketing institutions as they portray the organizations and their officials as untrustworthy and manipulative.
