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.

Captains take a bite. Maybe there was something wrong with the Australian food?

Afridi was being touted for captain in the Test and ODI formats and I would not have minded. He made a good case with his recent performances and showed signs of maturity but his actions here have got me wondering if he really has matured. Yes, every team probably does it Shahid, but I doubt they use their teeth and make it so blatantly obvious. He may as well have gone up to umpire Asoka De Silva and asked to use his dentures. And when quizzed on Pakistani television, why on earth did he come out with the excuse that he was smelling the ball? He would have even been better off saying that he was starving because of the poor Australian cuisine.

Afridi has history of course. In a game against England, he walked onto the middle of the pitch and preceded to do a few pirouettes to scuff up the track with his spikes. Highly subtle once again. Yet maybe he should have used his spikes on the ball this time by stepping on it as it obviously legal as it worked for Stuart Broad in the recent match against South Africa where he got away with it.

Stuart Broad, sinking his spikes into the ball & doing "nothing wrong"

And the difference between what Broad and Afridi did? Nothing. So why did he get away with it? Well it’s obvious, Broad is an Englishman. Broad knew what he was doing and as soon as the allegations emerged, the English PR machine went into overdrive with Broad being “astonished” by the allegations, Strauss calling them “malicious” and Cook being angry since they’d done “nothing wrong”. At the time, Nasser Hussain, Michael Vaughan and Simon Wilde of The Sunday Times had suggested that the outcome would have been far different if the bowler who did it was from Pakistan. It is clear this difference they spoke of is being shown to some extent in how Afridi’s actions were dealt with. If you look at the effect it has on the ball, surely metal spikes are worse than the enamel that teeth are made of? But I guess in the eyes of the ICC, a Pakistani is worse than an Englishman too.

What Afridi did was wrong and embarrassing, but that and what Broad did shows why it continues to pay to be from certain countries. Just ask Sulieman Benn who was suspended after an incident with Mitchell Johnson and the saint that is Brad Haddin. Haddin, who instigated the clash, and Johnson who clearly makes physical contact with Benn first (at 3 minutes 55 secs), were only fined a fraction of their match fees, whereas Benn was banned, after the match referee had finished analysing his findings. That match referee was Broad’s daddy Chris, by the way. If you don’t want to call it racism, then call it whatever you will, but what it is, is obvious.