Mohammad Amir - A young man that needs to get back on the straight and narrow

Almost two months into their sentences, there’s been much debate about whether Mr Justice Cooke got the sentences right for Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir. Yet certainly in Amir’s case, this isn’t about the length of sentence or the punishment itself, even.

If his sentence does not reform him, then Amir may have been a corrupt cheater, but the failings against him would have been far worse – and that’s without considering how such a young, talented man was failed before the spot-fixing scandal broke.

Justice should not be just about punishment. Real justice should have an element of rehabilitation to it. It’s not only about the punishment, but more importantly, it’s about the lesson. Will the custodial sentences handed out to Butt, Asif and Amir teach them that what they did was wrong? In Butt and Asif’s case, I’m not really bothered, but Mohammed Amir will have many years ahead of him in cricket, and his sentence would have needed to act as education to him too.

In an interview with Sky Sports News a while ago, Michael Atherton spoke about how Amir should be given a second chance and welcomed back into cricket after he has served his sentence and ICC ban. I would be inclined to agree with that, but Amir would have to have fundamentally changed as a person by then.

Throughout the scandal, up until the court case, Amir along with Butt and Asif has been pleading his innocence despite all the evidence against him. Even now, we still hear interviews from the families of all three men, saying how their sons are innocent and haven’t done anything wrong. How can this be? What do the players themselves think about what they have done and what have they been telling their families?

For me, this is a social issue, linked to the blasé attitude towards corruption and the prevalent moral turpitude that exists amongst many in Pakistan society. In a country where a man wanted by Interpol is elected president, a deliberate no-ball in a cricket match is just a no-ball – it is insignificant. Despite Amir and Asif’s guilty pleas and Butt’s punishment, I wouldn’t be surprised if the three still believed that they’ve hardly done anything wrong.

It’s a mentality that is very easy to criticise, but very difficult to understand for those that have grown up here and in other more developed countries. Take for instance the fact that faith is important to many of the Pakistani players, yet even in that infamous Test match where he was cheating, we saw Amir do the sajda (prostration) upon getting a wicket. So as a God-fearing person, did he really think he was doing something so wrong by bowling a no-ball? It appears he didn’t.

So can we, looking on from our ivory towers over here in our developed West really pass judgement? Is it fair to apply our rules and judge them by our laws and form opinion from what we would consider acceptable living in the society we live? Certainly if we applied the two allegations that were applied to the players against many in that country, then we’d have a problem on our hands. Yet that is a failure of the leaders who have for decades failed to serve the interest of the man on the street. So just like the people have been failed by the powers that be in Pakistan, was Amir not also failed by the PCB and the ICC?

Unlicensed agents buzzing around impressionable young stars is something the Pakistan board should have been very wary of since the Justice Qayyum report over a decade ago. Yet it was allowed to happen freely. The ICC was spending millions on its ACSU unit yet it took an English tabloid and a relatively simple sting to uncover the biggest scandal in cricket.

If Amir comes out of Feltom and returns from his ban still thinking that what he did was ‘just a no-ball’, then the British justice system, along with the PCB and ICC, would have also failed Mohammad Amir.

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Tabrez Ali Janjua also writes at www.khelopakistan.com

Both Butt and Asif were found guilty by a unanimous verdict in regards to the charge of conspiracy to cheat, and by a 10-2 majority verdict in regards to the charge of conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments.

The three players now await sentencing

Conspiracy to cheat carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and/or an unlimited fine. Conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments carries the heavier sentence of up to seven years in prison and/or an unlimited fine.

The judge will now consider the verdict before the sentences will be pronounced later this week. In the mean time, both players remain on bail.

It has also emerged that Mohammed Amir had pleaded guilty to the charges on September the 16th, yet the news was not allowed to be reported due to court restrictions in place that would prevent the verdict of jurors from being unfairly influenced in regards to Butt and Asif.

At the time, Amir’s barrister Ben Emmerson QC said “Amir wants to make it clear he wants to take full responsibility for what he did by bowling two deliberate no-balls. This vulnerable 18-year-old boy, as he was then, was subjected to extreme pressure from those upon whom he should have been able to rely. He recognises the damage he has caused Pakistan cricket and he wishes to do his best to put that right”

By making Amir out to be the “vulnerable 18-year-old boy”, Amir’s legal team is hoping that he will receive a lighter sentence. Yet the prosecution presented a number of key bits of evidence that could be interpreted as Amir being everything but the innocent and vulnerable boy his team is trying to present him as.

Key to the prosecution’s evidence is a number of text messages Amir had sent to some unknown numbers and also to Azher Majeed, brother of the agent at the center of the scandal, Mazhar Majeed. One text message read: “Amir here, don’t call my phone, ICC-police have taken my phone, are you able to delete those calls you made to me? If you can do it okay, don’t reply”.

Whilst Pakistan fans were hoping for some clemency to be shown to Amir, evidence of his involvement in what went on has cast doubt over whether any leniency will be shown by the judge towards him. Of course, the one thing in his favour is that he did plead guilty, thus it is probably a given that he will receive a lighter sentence than Butt and Asif who have throughout the case maintained their innocence despite the overwhelming evidence against them. The best Amir can probably hope for is a heavy fine, but we will find out later this week how much lighter his sentence is than the one Butt and Asif are to receive.

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Tabrez Ali Janjua also writes at www.khelopakistan.com

Likely custodial sentences will come as a shock to the players

The jury in the spot fixing case has currently retired to consider its verdict, leaving many Pakistan fans wondering about the nature of any possible sentence should Salman Butt and Mohammed Asif be found guilty.

The two players in court are facing charges of conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments and conspiracy to cheat. Mohammed Amir and agent Mazhar Majeed had themselves earlier this year pleaded guilty to the charges.

Obtaining and accepting corrupt payments is an offence contrary to section 1 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906. It carries a maximum sentence of seven years imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine. Cheating is an offence contrary to section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005. It carries a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine.

The maximum sentence for the above two offences does not only apply to the offence itself, but also to the conspiracy to commit such an offence, as is alleged in the case of Butt and Asif. So which kind of sentence are the players likely to receive?

The first thing we would have to consider is whether the duo is likely to be found guilty of the alleged offences. Personally, I feel that the writing is on the wall for a number of reasons. The ICC has already found them guilty of spot fixing and handed out their punishments. Though far from a legal court, their investigations must have had some proof to go on for them to hand out such long term bans.

Then there is the fact that both Amir and Majeed have admitted to spot fixing i.e. basically admitting that a crime had taken place. Their confession therefore implies that Butt and Asif would have been involved to some degree. Before sending the jury out to deliberate, Justice Cooke’s direction to aid the jury in their decision making was: “You can proceed on the basis that Majeed and Amir were involved in the spot-fixing at Lord’s, as all parties agree that is the case”.

Finally, there is the fact that neither Butt nor Asif stuck to the same story. They were seen to turn on one another through their lawyers a number of times during the case, undermining one another’s story. In fact, these denials and counter claims regarding one another’s stories points to an inherent distrust, suspicion and treachery among the two – common attributes of wrongdoers. As the old saying goes, ‘there’s no honour among thieves’.

So, the likelihood is that they will both be found guilty on at least one or both the charges. The one thing Asif has going for him in regards to the offence of conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments is that none of the money handed over to Majeed by the News of the World reporter was found with Asif. Even then, Asif is looking at a maximum prison sentence of two years if found guilty of the offence of cheating.

Due to the seriousness of the charges and the huge sums of money involved, expect Mr Justice Cooke to hand down a custodial sentence to both Butt and Asif, should they be found guilty. It will send a tremor across the cricketing world, but maybe some time in prison is exactly what is required, with all three of the players demonstrating a nonchalant and dismissive attitude to authority and the seriousness of the alleged crimes since the scandal broke. It’d give them plenty of time to think about their actions and the people they have allegedly cheated.

With a prison sentence likely, we must now await the jury’s verdict and then sentencing from the judge to be sure. Due to the complexities of the case and the bundles of evidence to consider, it should be said that the jury’s deliberation could well run into next week. If that is the case, the judge, Mr Justice Cooke, may well accept a majority verdict rather than the unanimous one he had initially asked for.

Tabrez Ali Janjua also writes at www.khelopakistan.com

Mohammad Amir – Clearly missing the game he brought in to disrepute

My first reaction to the news that Mohammad Amir had been caught playing in an official cricket game despite serving his five year ban for spot-fixing, was that the reaction of the media and authorities was excessive. Having considered everything, I am now beginning to wonder if Amir knew exactly what he was doing. Just like when he became involved in spot-fixing, and just like when he denied the allegations and backed Salman Butt, was Amir once again showing the same sheer disregard for rules and authority as he did back then?

When the ICC handed out the punishment to Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Amir, the one key difference in the punishments was that both Butt and Asif had received a suspended sentence as part of their bans. Amir did not receive a suspended term. A suspended term meant that should Butt and Asif be caught engaging in further breaches of the code whilst they were banned, the suspended sentence would be triggered and that period of the suspended sentence would then have to also be served. It thus raises the question would Amir have played in such a game if he did have an extra suspended sentence on top of the five years he received? Would he have been so careless about what he was doing?

Amir’s response was: “I would not be stupid enough to knowingly play in a match that I knew would contravene my ban”, yet we all know how capable Amir is of being stupid. He was stupid enough to engage in spot-fixing and bowl no-balls a foot over the crease. He was stupid enough to plead not guilty and back the corrupt Salman Butt despite the overwhelming evidence against them and the huge amount of sympathy around for Amir. He was stupid enough to destroy such a promising career for a few extra pounds. So we do know how stupid you can be Amir.

The question now is does he deserve to be punished further for flouting the rules of his ban? And if so, which kind of punishment would serve the purpose of him learning his lesson? Would extending his ban be too harsh a punishment? Or would a fine or the addition of a suspended sentence suffice? Certainly if he is brought to book, the club and league in question need to be looked at too for allowing him to play.

The ICC - Different rules for different teams

It has been reported that the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU) may be investigating Australia’s World Cup game against Zimbabwe after the Australians got off to a uncharacteristically slow start to their innings. When supposedly pressed on the matter, cricinfo reports that the “ICC said it did not comment on any ACSU matter, including whether or not a match had been investigated”. Really?

Back in September you may remember how there was a second round of allegations that followed the News of the World sting, that the Pakistan team were match-fixing. This time it was the Sun Newspaper, which had apparently handed over evidence to ACSU. The ICC’s response then was to go public on the matter, telling the media that Pakistan were being investigated by ACSU again, and remarkably, this was even before informing the PCB itself. So why the double standards? Why the hush-hush when it comes to the Australians but the indiscreet nonchalance when it came to the Pakistanis? Let’s remember, the Pakistan team, which did not include the suspended trio of Asif, Amir and Butt, were found completely innocent of the allegations in the end, despite having to cope with a trial by media due to the ICC’s blunder.

In defence of the Australians, teams are allowed to play slow as long as the intention is pure and it is a tactic employed to win the game. But whether there was something sinister in it or not is a separate issue, it is the ICC’s double standards that is the point of discussion here.

Will Pakistan raise issue with the ICC? I doubt it. They clearly have a inferiority complex and thus will continue to be treated as inferior by the governing body and their officials.

On a side note; what has happened to Ijaz Butt? England, who Pakistan have just had a highly charged series with, and India, Pakistan’s arch rivals, have just played out a tie in a World Cup match. Added to this, Shane Warne, previously linked to match fixing, actually predicted a tie. Am I the only one who is amazed that Ijaz Butt has managed to keep his mouth shut and has not questioned the result?!

Mohammad Amir should have immediately been safeguarded from the influences of Butt and Asif after the fixing scandal

Immediate thoughts after the scandal were that Amir should try to distance himself from Butt and Asif, in that this would give him a better chance at receiving a more lenient sentence if found guilty. He did not necessarily have to become informant in some kind of plea bargain, but just had to stop being associated with the captain and senior bowler that allegedly coerced him into the dirty world of fixing.

Yet not only has Amir shown no contrition, but he also appealed his provisional suspension along with Salman Butt, and foolishly also joined him in criticising the decision of Michael Beloff, the ICC code of conduct commissioner. Both were then critical the make-up of the tribunal that will this month decide their fate. Amir has also been filmed recently playing cricket with Butt, as revealed in an exclusive report by Sky Sports News’ Bryan Swanson. Swanson travelled to Pakistan and managed to speak with a confident looking Salman Butt at his residence in regards to the fixing allegations. Yet he was unable to get anything from Amir, who shied away from the cameras. That alone would tell you a lot about the relationship that existed between captain Butt and young Amir during their alleged fixes.

Amir has had time to think, time to question himself and his actions. He has had time to take good advice yet he has continued to stick to the story that they are completely innocent despite the evidence, and has continued to associate himself with Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif. As the teenager influenced by his captain, there was a lot of goodwill in the cricketing world for Amir. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) should also have been quick in getting to him and getting his head straight yet they left him to these vultures. Did they not recognise they could save the biggest talent emerging form Pakistan since Wasim Akram from disappearing from the cricketing world at such a young age? But with a slap on the wrists from the ICC due to their years of ineptitude, the PCB were busy trying to put their own house in order and look good to the ICC in fear of any action against the board and it’s Chairman.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in England is at the same time considering bringing a criminal case against the three. Whether or not they are charged by the police, it should not necessarily affect the ICC’s own investigation and tribunal. The ICC just need to prove that the players acted on fixer Mazhar Majeed’s instructions and did not play honestly and to their best ability, and that would be enough for a guilty verdict. The video footage from the News of the World, if legitimate, would be proof enough it seems.

It is getting to the point where a life ban for all three of them, for the share cheek of their claims in the face of all this evidence, is deserving. Butt, with his denials, seems to be operating by the old adage that if you say something enough times then people will begin to believe it. Even now, I don’t think Amir at least quite realises the gravity of what he’s done. Maybe he needs a harsh punishment for him to realise. I hope not. If he does disappear from cricket, you would have to wonder what other skills he has as means to earn a living. It’s ok for many of us living in developed countries with decent educations; we can do bad, get punished but then find other ways to earn a living. But for Amir, that may just be it. If this is the result of banning him for life, would the punishment outweigh the crime even though the crime was such a serious one? If Amir does get banned for life, then he only really has himself to blame.

Akmal: "Being dropped is not an easy thing to take". Yes, imagine what the ball feels like Kamran!

With the World Cup fast approaching, and Pakistan choosing to send in a early preliminary list of layers to the ICC for vetting, Kamran Akmal has decided to come out into the open about his frustrations at being ignored. Having asked the ICC if he is under any investigation and been given the green light, Akmal is surprised as to why he has not been brought back into the fold after being dropped for his poor performances in England.

The belief is that Akmal is being shunned by the PCB as there are suspicions that he has been involved in match fixing. With the PCB recently being told by the ICC to clean up their act, they may just be playing it safe by keeping Akmal away from the international side, even if there is no hard evidence he has been involved in fixing.

So why is there this cloud over Akmal? Suspicions first arose during the tour of Australia when Akmal dropped four catches behind the stumps in the 2nd Test, three of them off of Michael Hussey, who was Australia’s only hope left in the innings. Hussey managed a century, and carried his bat with the tail with Pakistan eventually losing by 36 runs. This led to Akmal being questioned by the PCB, and he was later dropped for the Twenty20s against England in Dubai.

When Pakistan flew to England, Akmal was sent a notice by the ICC seeking information about events related to the 2010 World Twenty20 held in the Caribbean, as the suspicion in regards to Akmal’s performances continued. On the same tour, he was dropped for the 2nd Test against England after a string of missed opportunities behind the stumps and poor batting scores.

He was also recently named in a video by fixer Mazhar Majeed as one of six Pakistan players that Majeed had on his side, ready to engage in fixing games.

Akmal in thought after dropping an easy chance off Strauss - one of many mistakes

Another thing I noticed was Akmal’s demeanour after the match fixing scandal involving Amir, Asif and Butt came out into the open in England in August. Up until then, he seemed very edgy and pressured with his batting and keeping. After the scandal broke, he seemed to begin to play with more freedom. Whilst the statistics for his wicket-keeping before and after the scandal are not available, and he has played only two Twenty20s since, we can compare his One Day innings’ before and after the spot fixing scandal broke in August 2010 adequately enough.

Akmal averaged a very good 40.2 in the five ODIs he played after the fixing scandal. If we take the same number of innings (five) before the scandal, his average drops to 21.2. What made Kamran suddenly want to score after the scandal had broke? Was he know playing freely rather than to the instructions of a fixer? Since then, he has also made his first ever double century in first class cricket scoring 268 for National Bank of Pakistan last month, and has generally batted well in the Quaid-E-Azam Trophy scoring 530 runs at an average of 75.71 so far this season. What could explain Kamran’s sudden run of form?

Whilst any one of the above points would probably not mean much on their own, brought together, they certainly raise question marks over whether Akmal gave it his best every single time. It does not tell us he was fixing games, but if he wasn’t trying his best, you would have to ask why?

Pakistan's new Test captain Misbah Ul-Haq showed the way with three half-centuries in four innings

Pakistan can come out of the drawn two-Test series against world number two South Africa with their heads held high. Though the argument may be that the wickets in the UAE were batsmen friendly, Pakistan’s reconstructed batting line up still held it’s own against South Africa’s, and South Africa had the better bowling attack. Let us also remember that Pakistan’s batsmen have struggled to pass 250 in Tests for a while now, batting paradise or not. Were it not for the time factor, Pakistan could have come close to or matched South Africa’s aggregated total in both the Tests, and that’s no mean feat.

The return of Younis Khan was a major factor in the ability of our batsmen to finally start playing Test match innings and setting Test match totals. The successful re-emergence of Mohammad Hafeez, Misbah Ul-Haq and Taufeeq Umar was also pleasing to watch. I have always been a big fan of Taufiq yet he is just one of many that have been the victim of selection favouritism in the past. He is a proper Test batsman.

Then there’s the emergence of the two youngsters Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq. For some reason, Azhar, despite being a reserved young man, seems to really irritate the opposition, ending up at the receiving end of some hostile bowling. He did so in England and here against South Africa also. But his composure and temperament was a joy to see. Shafiq came into the ODI side in England and you could immediately tell the young man was going to be here to stay. I was hoping to see him in the Test side much sooner as it was clear he had what it took to succeed. He got his chance in the 2nd Test though, in place of the out of form Umar Akmal, and he didn’t disappoint with a well played 61 in the first innings.

The biggest positive after the performance of our batsmen was the captaincy and personal performances of Misbah Ul-Haq. Amongst his supporters, of which I am one, Misbah could and should have been Pakistan’s captain years ago. But as the fixing scandals have revealed, people were in and out of the Pakistan team for reasons other than cricket back then. Hopefully Misbah will continue his good form and still provide us with a few good years during which time a younger future captain can be identified.

And last but not least, we must mention Abdur Rehman. The left arm spinner has been in almost every squad in recent times but rarely gets a game. He is the type of cricketer that, though he may be limited in natural ability, makes the most out of what he has got. He reminds me very much of England’s Michael Yardy. You know what you will get with these guys – good team players that will always play their part, with bat or ball. Maybe Pakistan need a few more of this type of player rather than the natural gifted types, that blow more cold than hot.

The only concern now is with the bowling attack. Had we had Mohammad Asif and Amir in the side, it would be no over-exaggeration to say that we may have even come out of this series as victors. It was unfortunate that Wahab went down with an injury and it is now clearer than ever that Mohammad Sami is just not good enough for the game at the top level. I still remain hopeful that Amir will be allowed back into international cricket and that alone really could make the difference to our Test team bowling attack.

There was almost a resigned pointlessness to Pakistan playing Tests not so long ago, due to the depressing manner in which we capitulated. But the character and heart shown by the players in the performances in these two games has given the Stani fans lots of hope.

RELATED POLL RESULTS. HOW DID YOU DO?

How will Pakistan do under new captain Misbah Ul-Haq in the two game Test series against South Africa in the UAE?
* 0-2 Loss (29%, 9 Votes)
* 0-1 Loss (26%, 8 Votes)
* Draw (23%, 7 Votes)
* 2-0 Win (16%, 5 Votes)
* 1-0 Win (6%, 2 Votes)

Will Mohammad Sami be seen in a Pakistan shirt again?
* No, it’s time to move on (42%, 5 Votes)
* Yes, but he shouldn’t be (33%, 4 Votes)
* Yes, he still has what it takes (25%, 3 Votes)

As chairman of Majeed’s Croydon Athletic Football Club, Le Cluse had previously admitted that the club was being investigated for money laundering after the spot fixing scandal involving Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and Salman Butt.

It is believed that Le Cluse had a large amount of his personal wealth invested in the club and found it difficult to cope with the realisation that it had all been lost. The club’s assets are currently frozen by HM Revenue and Customs, and just two weeks ago, was rescued from liquidation after Majeed himself injected £10,000 for costs for the rest of the season.

This latest development sheds more light on the murky world that Pakistan’s cricketers have become involved in, in particular the young Mohammad Amir. As more information comes out, those that have called for Amir to receive a life ban, may consider having a re-think in asking for more clemency to be shown to a youngster caught up in the criminal world.

Andrew Strauss sullies the game but it's acceptable

Cricket has always seemed to take the moral high-ground when it comes to sports related problems such racism and hooliganism we see in football, or the continued battle athletics has with drugs use. But there is no other sport where cheating is so blatantly accepted as just a part of the game. We saw the hue and cry over the recent spot fixing allegations against the Pakistan player where law makers, supporters and players of various nations acting as if they had been truly hurt, but where are these voices when something like this happens? I deplore match-fixing, let me make that clear, but I deplore this form of cheating too. Whilst people may argue there is no comparison between the no-balls Amir and Asif bowled, I will simply ask them which act influenced the result of the game? Was it those no-balls or Strauss’ failure to walk when he was on 38 and went on to make a match winning 126. Who is the bigger cheat?

I rate Andrew Strauss; he is an excellent batsman and a good captain. What I admire about him most though is the intelligent and thoughtful manner in which he speaks even when ungracious coach Andy Flower does the opposite. Unfortunately, when Strauss doesn’t walk he badly lets himself down. Now this is not the first time Strauss has been involved with something like this. In the Test series that has just finished, Strauss stood his ground on two separate occasions after Pakistan’s appeals had been declined by the umpire but then reviewed on request. Now Strauss knew he was out, he knew the review would show he was out, but he still stood his ground. Even if I had edged behind for example and been given not out but had still stayed at the crease, once the bowling team had asked for a review I would walk even before the third umpire’s decision because it would be embarrassing not to do so. Strauss unfortunately did not, on two separate occasions. A man’s character, his reputation, is far more important than what he achieves in a game Andrew. Of course, Strauss is not the only one in cricket who is guilty of this, but when such a nice gentleman can repeatedly do it without obvious regret, it gives you an idea of how acceptable it is in the game.

Not only is this cheating not discouraged in cricket, it is well rewarded and and thus, encouraged. Strauss was presented with the man of the match award for his match winning century, a century he had no shame in celebrating when he brought it up in the 34th over of the game, even though he was out much earlier. Had I cheated my way to a milestone, I wouldn’t have celebrated as Strauss did, but of course, I wouldn’t have been there in the first place as I would have walked off when I was out.

But maybe that is just a reflection of the way of the world. If you do bad, cheat, take short cuts and are selfish, you get rewarded, but if you’re a good doer you get shunned and sidelined, like Rashid Latif for example who has recently been forced to resign after he revealed how Pakistan’s cricketers meddled in match-fixing in the past.

So while the law makers, players and supporters of different nations put up this act of being appalled by the recent spot-fixing allegations, let them remember their contribution too, to the cheating that goes on in this game. Neither are you or your game that innocent after all. In his book What Price the Moral High Ground, author Robert Frank challenges the notion that success is achieved only at the expense of doing good, and cricket, the gentleman’s game, can do far worse than to challenge this notion too and get rid of this accepted disease that pervades the game.