IPL 6: As real as it gets

We all love conspiracy theories, don’t we? Our innate need to make our daily lives appear less mundane eggs us on to believe there are mysteries, hidden agendas and invisible hands pulling invisible strings everywhere. So the US Government covers up alien landings at Roswell, the Illuminati are still recruiting, the Flying Spaghetti monster exists and yes, IPL matches are scripted in the same mold as Bollywood blockbusters.

A nationwide survey done by Yahoo! India last year revealed an astounding 68.9% believed match-fixing is rampant in the IPL. This, after all the endless debates on live TV, full-page newspaper-editorials and dozens of ‘sting-operations’ pertaining to the same. So, what does this ultimately mean? We know for a fact the IPL has revolutionized watching-cricket-at-home in the country. This is a ‘sporting’- event designed for the entire family, as opposed to how cricket was once restricted mostly to the male bastion who prayed they could sneak in a few hours of the game in-between soap operas. If people believe the whole thing’s scripted, do they watch the matches in the same vein as they do movies?

A billion-dollar cricket-league unleashed upon a billion-strong cricket-loving population is a miracle, but it’s also blood in the water. When that happens, the sharks come sniffing. Everyone wants a piece of the action, be it legal or otherwise. Match-fixing is real, a threat that skirts the fringes of cricket, always with a foot in the door. However, despite the smoke, credible evidence of a fire is yet to be unearthed- and even the possibility of someone pulling off the odd spot-fixing, let alone predetermine entire results, is rather faint.

The anatomy of match and spot-fixing

In recent years, probably because the heat of match-fixing has got to be too much for bookies, the focus has been on small events within matches than entire games. This is spot-fixing; you bet on every little thing, from how much a batsman will score before lunch to something as silly as how many players are chewing gum on the field. Bookies are always on the lookout for inside information like the condition of the pitch and team composition, and it would seem players would be tempted when bricks of cash are thrown in. The English discovered their players in county cricket being offered five times their annual remunerations for bowling a single no-ball.

The IPL is another beast entirely. It is the definition of global spotlight, and the organizers are expecting the bookie-slugfest. Every team, player and delivery is under intense scrutiny; everyone’s watching out for that one anomaly that’d eventually bring the juggernaut crashing down upon itself. When the tournament was first announced, alarm bells went off in cricket boards across the planet – something like this would trigger betting-rings of all shapes and sizes and make the game vulnerable to corruption. Cricket was irreparably scarred when the first major match-fixing scandal came to light in 1999; and because of IPL’s scope and scale, the very credibility of the game is at stake.

So, the shields are up and everyone’s on their toes. The ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) has had its sights trained on the tournament, and helped smoke out five Indian domestic players who were involved in spot-fixing in the last year. Anti-Corruption Bureaus of various states have been involved in incessant raids on gambling-dens throughout the years; most notable was the one in Mumbai last year when a Pakistan-based gang was arrested before they could begin operations. All financial transactions of international player are under the purview of their respective cricket-boards. In summary, bookies and punters are more or less out of the equation.

The IPL brings together the greatest ambassadors of the game from all around the world. It’s difficult to believe they would allow themselves to be dictated terms just to make a quick buck, and put all that respect and integrity they’ve earned over the years at risk.

Among the youngsters, the bad apples are being constantly weeded out, as was apparent last year. The lads from India’s domestic circuit regard the IPL as the single-greatest opportunity to showcase their skills, make inroads into public memory and into the international XI. With the kind of punitive measures the BCCI has in place for transgressors, it isn’t a smart decision to make deals that essentially put a lifetime of cricket and honor at risk.

Cricket matches cannot be thrown without the knowledge of every single person on the field. So when skeptics cast aspersions post the outcome of a match, they are in fact questioning the credibility of everyone involved – the players, the support staff, the umpires and even the match referee. It’s the curse of the game; mere whispers of trickery gain wider acceptance than years of sweat, toil and glory.

So, when CSK pulls off one last-minute heist after another, or RP Singh bowls a delivery that would make him appear a suitable case for treatment, cricket-lovers may breathe easy: this is no orchestrated illusion but pure, homespun cricket. Let’s be optimistic until reason tells us not to, and cherish the delights the game we live to love offers us.