What's new

Danish Kaneria's admission of spot fixing re-opens a dark chapter of corruption in Pakistan cricket

MenInG

PakPassion Administrator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 2, 2004
Runs
217,980
Writing for FirstPost Sports, Saj expresses his views on the recent admission of guilt by Danish Kaneria and explains why it re-opens a dark chapter of corruption in Pakistan cricket.


methode%2Ftimes%2Fprod%2Fweb%2Fbin%2F0e0378ec-d25e-11e8-a7e2-4943f60e65b3.jpg


The term flawed-genius, as history indicates, has been used to define many highly-skilled individuals who had the world at their feet but instead chose a darker path to infamy. The immense talent bestowed upon such people would have allowed them to reach the stars but the path to ultimate greatness in their minds lay in some undesirable short cuts. Greed and avarice drove them forward each step of the way towards what they hoped was immortality in terms of fame and fortune. However, as the Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria recently found out to his discomfort, the guilt associated with crime was too huge a cross to bear.

His recent admission to the world of his complicity in a spot-fixing scandal which took place 6 years ago seemed to bring relief to him on a personal basis. The length of time it took for him to come to terms with his misdemeanour and offer his confession to the world, however, has not won him universal praise as he would have thought it might. The overwhelming reaction to his appearance on a television channel to accept what he had continued to deny for years on end appears to be a cynical ploy to salvage whatever ounce of respectability and goodwill he can extricate from the whole matter.

If the idea of his admission of guilt was to make amends in some way towards the hardship the years of denial had caused to his family, friends and the millions of Pakistan cricket fans then the questions raised by the timing of his announcement will only cause more misery to the very people he supposedly cares about.

Hailing from a respectable family and with the ability to spin the ball, the now 37-year-old Danish Kaneria could have easily continued to be an integral part of the Pakistan Test side for many years. His presence could have filled the void of skilful leg-spinners which Pakistan were feeling when he was at top of his game, and he could have been considered an able successor to the fine legacy left by the likes of the legendary Abdul Qadir.

Danish Kaneria played a total of 79 international games for Pakistan between 2000 and 2010, where his unique brand of leg-spin bowling allowed him to claim 276 wickets. His tally of 261 Test wickets was a figure only bettered by the great Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and the legendary all-rounder and captain, Imran Khan.

The go-to bowler for his captain in times of stress, Danish Kaneria was darling of the crowds around the world. His achievement of being one of the few Hindu players to ever represent Pakistan at the international level also gave him near celebrity status in a Muslim majority country. The cartwheeling action and his unique style of appealing made for compulsive viewing regardless of whichever venue or pitch Pakistan would play on.

The real tragedy of Danish Kaneria doesn’t just lie in the sordid details of his demeanours but in the fact that with the world his oyster, he threw away his chance to become one of Pakistan’s greatest ever bowlers for want of short-term financial gain. In the process he tainted the name of the game that he loved so much and also brought disrepute to the country he professed loyalty for.

Not only did Danish Kaneria bring shame and destruction to his own career, he also managed to entice his Essex team-mate, Mervyn Westfield to agreeing to concede 12 runs during an over of a One-Day game for Essex against Durham in 2009. The England and Wales Cricket Board were having none of this and imposed a life-ban in June 2012 on Kaneria, describing him as "a grave danger to the game of cricket". The ECB also banned Westfield for five years which effectively robbed him of a lucrative career.

Danish Kaneria’s continued insistence that he was innocent of the charges against him was perhaps understandable as a desperate attempt to save whatever was left of his honour but what many also found unforgivable was his charge that Westfield had not been pressured by him to take part in the conspiracy.

What exactly changed in Kaneria’s life to make him come clean to the world about his corruption is something only he can explain. Perhaps the fact that all his appeals to overturn ECB’s ban were rejected, or with his advancing age, he could no longer resume a career in domestic or international level which left him with nothing to lose, could have been a factor. Or perhaps the weight of guilt hanging on him helped him take the honourable decision that many wanted him to take many years ago was a reason which drove him to make the admission.

Pakistan cricket had suffered many a time from the lack of integrity of some of its many prominent players. The saga related to Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir was one that grabbed the headlines in 2010 and in a sense consigned Kaneria’s case to the background. And whilst the PSL corruption cases did present a new challenge to the overall reputation of Pakistan cricket, by and large things had started to settle down and there was a feeling that a new golden chapter of integrity was upon Pakistan cricket. However, with the new unwelcome attention brought on by Danish Kaneria’s recent admission of guilt, the spotlight is firmly back on the rather ugly aspect of Pakistan cricket, a period of restoration for the reputation of the game in Pakistan has begun, once again.

https://www.firstpost.com/firstcric...f-corruption-in-pakistan-cricket-5410401.html
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Standard procedure for Pakistan. In the world of cricket, we are the home of dishonesty and corruption. In addition, our fans have no shame either because they continue to defend these players.

The legacy will continue. There is no cure for this cancer, but handing out lifetime bans will be a good deterrent, to an extent.
 
Wasn't his international career already over? He did it playing for Essex, not Pakistan.
 
Disgraceful that he didnt admit it at the time. I hope we can finally get over this thing. Somehow I feel we are one idiots desire away from another controversy.

However isnt it interesting that the Aljazeera documentary has been dismissed completley..just saying.,.
 
What it definitely does is embarrasses and shuts up people like Rashid Latiff who was hell bent to defend Kaneria knowing full well he was guilty.
 
Disgraceful that he didnt admit it at the time. I hope we can finally get over this thing. Somehow I feel we are one idiots desire away from another controversy.

However isnt it interesting that the Aljazeera documentary has been dismissed completley..just saying.,.

To be honest i can understand why he didnt admit it. He said his father was severely ailing at the time and he was a proud man. Kaneria didnt want to put his father through the shame. I know its still wrong not to admit but just saying. The biggest crime was to fix in the first place. He put himself into all of this so no escaping from that.
 
Not that Merwyn was very clean himself but feel bad for him.

Kaneria should have to pay more for this.
 
I would also question Rashid Latiff integrity in this he was shamelessly defending him when most people knew he was clearly guilty.
 
To be honest i can understand why he didnt admit it. He said his father was severely ailing at the time and he was a proud man. Kaneria didnt want to put his father through the shame. I know its still wrong not to admit but just saying. The biggest crime was to fix in the first place. He put himself into all of this so no escaping from that.

His father passed away in 2013. For this excuse to hold weight, he should have admitted in 2013
 
His father passed away in 2013. For this excuse to hold weight, he should have admitted in 2013

Its not as simple once you have already held on to a lie for some time.

But there is simply no excuse for doing the deed in the first place.
 
Not that Merwyn was very clean himself but feel bad for him.

Kaneria should have to pay more for this.

I don't know if there are any lawyers advising Kaneria because the Essex Police have reopened the case, Pakistan and the UK have an extradition treaty. Spot fixing is a criminal offence in the UK and Asif, Butt and Amir have already gone to jail, Kaneria's playing days were over anyways with the life ban, there was still a section in society which believed him to be a victim of his minority status, conspiracy which is why he was getting gigs on tv as an expert.

This is a huge brain fade from him to be very honest and the consequences are going to be way more than he ever imagined.
 
Not that Merwyn was very clean himself but feel bad for him.

Kaneria should have to pay more for this.

What was Merwyn’s involvement in this case and why do you “feel bad for him”?
 

Thank you for sharing this but Merwyn knew what he was getting into. He really should know right from wrong and should never have been “pressurized” into fixing had he come to his senses.

To give an anology - it is like saying Nasir Jamshed ruined Sharjeel’s and Khalid Latif’s career. Sure Nasir had poor character himself but the other two should have made a better decision themselves..
 
What it definitely does is embarrasses and shuts up people like Rashid Latiff who was hell bent to defend Kaneria knowing full well he was guilty.

Why did Rashid Latif defend him? I thought he was the champion among the anti-fixing camp back in the 90s.
 
Danish was a wonderful talent that remained unfulfilled. As a leg spinner he was tall, spun the ball both ways but most of us that saw his career knew something was missing and i felt it was his bowling intelligence much like Mohammed Sami's. The fixing allegations came as shock but you knew they true and yet another PK lets us down.
 
Danish was our hero when we drew the Test series in India in 2005.

But sadly - his involvement in the Sydney Test of 2010 let to his downfall (like it did to several others)
 
posts deleted on this thread as people getting too personal with each other.

Suggest a few deep breaths and start again
 
4th highest wicket-taker for Pakistan which is incredible.

I wonder what was 'real' and what was 'manufactured' during his career.

Danish I presented you with a PakPassion t shirt, can you return it please :)
 
If he had a better captain he could have done a lot more. Inzamam was one of the worst captains in the history of the game, never utilized players he had and neither did he give youngsters a fair run. That was a dark period for us honestly, as he had good players under him.
 
If he had a better captain he could have done a lot more. Inzamam was one of the worst captains in the history of the game, never utilized players he had and neither did he give youngsters a fair run. That was a dark period for us honestly, as he had good players under him.

Unless a Pakistani captain encouraged Kaneria to go to bookies, there is no one to blame but Kaneria himself.
 
I would also question Rashid Latiff integrity in this he was shamelessly defending him when most people knew he was clearly guilty.

Can’t really blame Rashid for this.

Like many others - he was also probably fooled by Danish’s pleas for innocence.
 
And some of this guy's mates still think he is innocent and a victim of racism from ECB.
 
If any Pakistan players are caught fixing from this point onwards they should be banned from playing for Pakistan. This is the only way to deal with them. I didn't mind Amir coming back at the time but in hindsight it has set a bad example. Showing that you can fix and comeback. Let's be honest Australia or England would have never brought him back.

PCB also need to try and guide younger players on how to stay away from fixing and how to deal with bookies if they can. We need to try and do something to prevent any more fixers. It's honestly getting embrassing now.
 
And some of this guy's mates still think he is innocent and a victim of racism from ECB.

But honestly speaking, Kaneria is going to get into big trouble now. The Britain police is re-opening the investigation, he could be called to England and even face jail time given that the crime took place on English soil and Pakistan-UK have an extradition treaty.

The ECB can now with even bigger force demand Kaneria to reimburse them for legal fees incurred in those court proceedings.

He is not going to get any more media work on TV and neither will he have any ex test players vouching for him in the media again.

No Minority senator is going to request the PCB to help find Kaneria a job again.

Kaneria's high school has dissassociated themselves for him.

I mean who advised Kaneria to confess? It sounds like he has sold himself again for a quick buck but has lost way more than he is getting in the short term. This is just diabolical decision making.
 
Did he confess for money or what? Like it doesn't make sense why he would deny it for this long and out of the blue admit to it, like i'm pretty sure mostly everyone knew he fixed, but what made him all of a sudden decide to admit?
 
Did he confess for money or what? Like it doesn't make sense why he would deny it for this long and out of the blue admit to it, like i'm pretty sure mostly everyone knew he fixed, but what made him all of a sudden decide to admit?

The temptations of a quick buck with absolutely no regard to the long term implications just like what got into trouble in the first place.
 
The temptations of a quick buck with absolutely no regard to the long term implications just like what got into trouble in the first place.

Quick buck from whom? :13:

I wonder if there are any more skeletons in his closet..
 
Quick buck from whom? :13:

I wonder if there are any more skeletons in his closet..

I am pretty certain he did not make this confession to that Arab TV channel for nothing, he must have been paid big bucks for the interview.
 
I am pretty certain he did not make this confession to that Arab TV channel for nothing, he must have been paid big bucks for the interview.

Agree but who would pay him and why?
 
I would also question Rashid Latiff integrity in this he was shamelessly defending him when most people knew he was clearly guilty.

Rashid doesnt defend him as being innocent, he was defending his right to earn and the punishment he received.

Which I also think is right, I mean yes he fixed, but flip others have done too. Either ban all and not allow them back into their profession!

The pick and choose punishment is a bit unfair
 
Rashid doesnt defend him as being innocent, he was defending his right to earn and the punishment he received.

Which I also think is right, I mean yes he fixed, but flip others have done too. Either ban all and not allow them back into their profession!

The pick and choose punishment is a bit unfair

The ECB gave a life ban to Kaneria, sadly PCB had no choice to abide by the ECB ruling. Kaneria has totally destroyed his own case with his 6 years of lies and deceit.
 
The ECB gave a life ban to Kaneria, sadly PCB had no choice to abide by the ECB ruling. Kaneria has totally destroyed his own case with his 6 years of lies and deceit.

PCB shoudl have allowed him domestic cricket. I mean ECB can ban a pakistani player in the counties, but global ban, I think is a bit harsh considering precedents that the world has set on fixing

Meryn 5 years
Amir 5
Asif Butt 5
Tim May, Shane Warne Mark Waugh a fine
CSK kings team banned for a year
 
PCB shoudl have allowed him domestic cricket. I mean ECB can ban a pakistani player in the counties, but global ban, I think is a bit harsh considering precedents that the world has set on fixing

Meryn 5 years
Amir 5
Asif Butt 5
Tim May, Shane Warne Mark Waugh a fine
CSK kings team banned for a year

I think the ICC rules dictate that a decision made by one member board will have to be upheld by the other member boards. Also it was the after math of the Amir, Asif, Butt saga in England and the PCB wanted to keep distance from Kaneria and they probably had solid evidence of Kaneria's guilt and were just face palming as to why Kaneria was being so deluded and foolish into wasting his life savings when there was so much overwhelming court evidence against him.
 
PCB shoudl have allowed him domestic cricket. I mean ECB can ban a pakistani player in the counties, but global ban, I think is a bit harsh considering precedents that the world has set on fixing

Meryn 5 years
Amir 5
Asif Butt 5
Tim May, Shane Warne Mark Waugh a fine
CSK kings team banned for a year

CSK was not banned for fixing. it was banned for betting, which is illegal in India.
 
Isn't betting the evil which involves fixing?

Betting is just betting. You could go to the bookies in a high street in the UK and put money on XYZ scoring a hundred or XYZ being the first to score a goal.

This is not illegal in most developed countries. It is illegal in India though and thats why the CSK was banned. Because its owners got involved in betting.

Now, fixing is a crime in every country.

Betting does not necessarily mean that it will also be fixed. But if there is fixing involved, it would mean that there is some form of betting involved.
 
Following tainted leg-spinner Danish Kaneria’s confession about being guilty in the 2012 spot-fixing scandal six years after being in denial, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) may go ahead with a fresh inquiry against him to verify if Pakistan cricket has been impacted due to the scandal.

“Kaneria’s confession is a serious matter and this week the Chairman of the board, Ehsan Mani will have deliberations with his legal team and the Board’s Anti-Corruption and Vigilance officials to see if a new inquiry should be opened up against Kaneria since he has now admitted to corruption,” a source in the PCB was quoted as saying in a report in PTI on Sunday.

Kaneria received life ban from the England Cricket Board (ECB) in 2012 and is now also required to play ECB around 100,000 pounds for the case. The latest inquiry could see Kaneria being banned from appearing on television or radio channels as an expert.

“The board adopted a soft stance on Kaneria despite his life ban. But now it could move to completely blank him out of the cricket scenario,” the source said.

“In the past, it came to the PCB’s notice that Kaneria had played in a private event in Bangkok and elsewhere, but it kept quiet on it.”

https://www.cricketcountry.com/news...e-banned-from-appearing-on-tv-channels-757605
 
Following tainted leg-spinner Danish Kaneria’s confession about being guilty in the 2012 spot-fixing scandal six years after being in denial, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) may go ahead with a fresh inquiry against him to verify if Pakistan cricket has been impacted due to the scandal.

“Kaneria’s confession is a serious matter and this week the Chairman of the board, Ehsan Mani will have deliberations with his legal team and the Board’s Anti-Corruption and Vigilance officials to see if a new inquiry should be opened up against Kaneria since he has now admitted to corruption,” a source in the PCB was quoted as saying in a report in PTI on Sunday.

Kaneria received life ban from the England Cricket Board (ECB) in 2012 and is now also required to play ECB around 100,000 pounds for the case. The latest inquiry could see Kaneria being banned from appearing on television or radio channels as an expert.

“The board adopted a soft stance on Kaneria despite his life ban. But now it could move to completely blank him out of the cricket scenario,” the source said.

“In the past, it came to the PCB’s notice that Kaneria had played in a private event in Bangkok and elsewhere, but it kept quiet on it.”

https://www.cricketcountry.com/news...e-banned-from-appearing-on-tv-channels-757605

Someone please ask Kaneria why? Why is his decision making so dumb
 
Rashid doesnt defend him as being innocent, he was defending his right to earn and the punishment he received.

Which I also think is right, I mean yes he fixed, but flip others have done too. Either ban all and not allow them back into their profession!

The pick and choose punishment is a bit unfair

Defending a fixer is wrong and he was ioenly saying he didnt do anything wrong. Just to be clear he didnt say he punishment is too harsh etc he was maintaining his innocence.
 
Back
Top