Chris Cairns vs Modi – why both are correct, part 1

This is part 1 of a 3 part series on why both Modi and Cairns are right in this public altercation. Despite all this, it isn’t exactly a win-win.

Part 1: Why Christopher Cairns is right.

Lalit Modi had an interesting tweet fly out of his twitter account yesterday. It was to the effect that Chris Cairns would not be a part of the IPL Auctions to be held soon. The reason – he was allegedly involved in match fixing and the IPL could not afford to be associated with anyone with a tarnished image.

Upon receiving the tweet I was appalled at first. Something did seem out of place. When did Chris Cairns fix a match? Weren’t the Black Caps supposed to be among the jolliest of cricketers around? In fact, they are too jolly to be allowed to compete at the world stage.

Remember the time when the ICC decided to constitute a whole tournament, the Champions Trophy, just so that New Zealand could win something to keep the motivation going.

If you ever had the time to Google “New Zealand Players involved in Match Fixing”, you won’t find much to write home about, apart from a few incidents in non-cricketing sports, and maybe this blog post. These are good people we are talking about.

But if that is so, then why the sudden furore about match fixing?

Why does Lalit Modi allegedly think that Chris Cairns was allegedly involved in Match Fixing? The answer lies in one decision which the Indian Cricket League (ICL), the rebel league of which Christopher Lance Cairns was an enthusiastic participant for 2 seasons, took.

You see, sometime in October 2008, this piece of news shocked the world, or tried to at least:

The Indian Cricket League on Monday announced the suspension of former India batsman Dinesh Mongia and former New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns in a two-line statement issued by its press office. The two players represented the Chandigarh Lions, of which Cairns was the captain, in the ‘rebel’ T20 league. South African Andrew Hall has been named as the team’s replacement skipper.

But, while ICL officials were tight-lipped on the issue, declining to come on the record to reveal further information on the suspension, a senior source in the league told The Indian Express that the step had been taken due to allegations of “under-performance” against the players.

According to the source, an enquiry has been ordered and, if found guilty, both players would be penalised. “Till then, they’ve only been suspended,” he said.

“Under-performance is a serious threat to ICL. We’re worried over players with hefty contracts taking their association with the ICL too lightly and not performing to their potential. Under-performing cricketers set a bad example for others and bring the league to disrepute. But the honeymoon period for such players is over.”

Source: The Indian Express Website..Oct 28, 2008 at 2343 hrs

Interesting. The fact that Indian Express seems to be one of the very few newspapers which covered this angle of the story. Other publications went with the more default “Cairns reported for the camp unfit, and Mongia knew about the former being unfit” theory, if you didn’t already know.

The important issue here is that the ICL never officially stated that the said players were involved in Match Fixing or Underperforming, but there were sufficient under-the-surface rumours, of course inadmissible under the court of law.

Hence, Chris Cairns appears to be right as it will be difficult to prove that he was involved in match fixing. Thus, the allegations would, in a fair legal scenario, be baseless.

Coming Soon: The other half of the story. Why Mr. Modi is also right.

Watch this space.

Dinesh Mongia is also barred from the IPL, but he is not bothered. Allegedly.

Tagged as: Auctions, Chris Cairns, Cricket, Dinesh Mongia, Fitness, ICL, IPL Season 3, Lalit Modi, Legal, Match Fixing