0 Lou Vincent admits he's a cheat

Lou Vincent has put out a statement this afternoon. He is expected to receive a life ban from any involvement in cricket from the England Cricket Board tonight (NZ time).

Here's the complete text of Vincent's statement:

My name is Lou Vincent and I am a cheat.
I have abused my position as a professional sportsman on a number of occasions by choosing to accept money through fixing.
I have lived with this dark secret for many years, but just months ago I reached the point where I decided I had to come forward and tell the truth.
It's a truth that has rightly caused uproar and controversy in New Zealand and around the world.
I have shamed my country. I have shamed my sport. I have shamed those close to me. For that I am not proud.
I lost faith in myself and the game. I abused the game I love. I had to put things right.
Speaking out. Exposing the truth. Laying bare the things I have done wrong is the only way I can find to begin to put things right.
The time has come for me to now face them like a man and accept the consequences, whatever they may be.
I could not live with my wrongdoing any longer, and after meeting my future wife Susie, after learning what unconditional love really is, I felt strong enough to tell her what I'd done, and she has helped me take the painful steps to telling my parents, my wider family, and then the authorities.
I am proud of those I love. Especially my immediate family and friends. Their strength, support and forgiveness has enabled me to address some deep and uncomfortable issues in my life.
I can finally look my children in eyes and tell them that honesty is the best policy, even if it feels like the hardest thing to do at times.
I now believe in myself as a person again and do not wake up every morning hating myself.
Today is the day I offer my deepest apologies to the public and the cricketing world, to the loyal fans, to the dedicated coaches, staff and all players past and present.
I apologise to the and thank the ACSU [Anti-Corruption and Security Unit] for their help and support, which is out there for all players and it has helped me a great deal. Chris Morris and his legal team, and all associations that have handled this sensitive situation with professionalism and respect.
The people who know me know I am vulnerable. But they also know I am not stupid and that I know what is right and what is wrong.
I do suffer from depression but it is absolutely no reason or excuse for all that I have done wrong.
I used to think mistakes were the actions of bad people. I now know even good people can make the worst of mistakes. My actions, I will regret for the rest of my life.
For sport to prosper, it is up to the players to police the game, because they are the ones that will ultimately lose out if they allow themselves to be used as pawns to make money.
No one should ever be put in that position. And no one should ever allow themselves to forget what sport is about and let money rule their decisions.
The decisions I made were wrong. Players must be better than that. Above reproach. For the fans. For the sport.
For the first time in a very long time I feel positive about the future because I am finally becoming the man I wanted to be. I have to face up to my wrongs to make them right.
I have kept my head down for too long now. This is my time to man up to my mistakes and today I can stand with a better conscience because I know I'm doing the right thing.
It is entirely my fault that I will never be able to stand in front of a game again. It is entirely my fault that I will not be able to apply my skills in a positive way to help future cricketers.
But it is entirely possible that I can use this moment to convince others not to be tempted by wrongdoing. To do the right thing for themselves, for their families and friends, and for the sport they love.
I accept my punishment and I thank you for [reading] my statement.

Kudos to Lou Vincent for finally making a complete admission of his serial wrong-doing. He has brought cricket into disrepute, and as well as the shame he has visited on himself, he has caused many of his team-mates to be viewed with suspicion.

That's what something as insidious as match-fixing or spot-fixing does. It causes those of us who love the game to question ever result, every dismissal, and pretty much everything that happens on the field of play.

We wish Lou Vincent well for a life which will now, because of his life ban, have no contact with cricket. He has burned his bridges to the cricket community, and the life ban was the only punishment to fit the crime. We hope he manages to rebuild his life, and use the torment he has suffered in recent months in a constructive way. He will be only too aware however that he has let down a lot of people he would once have considered friends.

As we have said before, match-fixing is a cancer on the sport we love ahead of all other sports. Here's hoping that Lou Vincent's fate will be a lesson to those tempted by easy money that cheating simply isn't worth it.

0 Lou Vincent banned by Bangladesh

Former New Zealand international cricketer Lou Vincent has received his first suspension for match-fixing; Cricinfo reports:

Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful has been banned for eight years (three years suspended) by the BPL anti-corruption tribunal for his involvement in match and spot-fixing in the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League.

Dhaka Gladiators' managing director Shihab Chowdhury has been banned for ten years (three years suspended) for fixing, former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent is out for three years, and Sri Lanka batsman Kaushal Lokuarachchi gets an 18-month ban for failing to report an approach. In February, Vincent had admitted to not reporting a bookie's approach. 

As the story notes, Vincent was one of four people charged. Here's more about his specific offences:

Chowdhury has been charged on article 6.2 and 6.5, which means he cannot participate in any cricketing activities. He also has been fined Tk 20 lakh, to be paid to the BCB. He has been found guilty of being party to fixing the Chittagong match held on February 2, 2013. This decision was first announced on February 26 this year, when the tribunal released the short verdict.

Vincent too was charged under the same articles as Chowdhury, while Lokuarachchi was charged under article 2.4.2. "The tribunal imposes ineligibility for 18 months on Kaushal Lokuarachchi," Khademul said. "There was one charge against him, and that is his failure to report a corrupted approach. Someone had asked him if he wants to fix match, and he didn't report it. He has been found guilty under article 2.4.2 of the BCB's code.

"Lou Vincent, the New Zealand cricketer, has been punished with a three-year ban. He has been found guilty under article 6.2 and 6.5," 

This suspension of course is a mere prelude to the main events to follow. Lou Vincent has also been charged by the England Cricket Board for match-fixing in English county matches, and Cricket Australia is planning charges against him. The ICC is still investigating other allegations.

It is highly likely that Lou Vincent will ultimately be banned for life for match-fixing. The only redeeming feature for him is that he has been open with cricket authorities about his participation, although Chris Cairns may not necessarily see that as a redeeming feature!

But if a life ban ensues, Vincent will have no one to blame but himself. There is no place in cricket for corruption and cheating.

0 Why we shouldn't tour Pakistan

There's some bad stuff going down  right now at Karachi's international airport.

KARACHI: Four terrorists have been killed while three personnel from the Airport Security Force (ASF) and one each from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have been killed following an armed attack at the Karachi airport.
According to initial reports, four armed attackers hurled grenades and opened fire as they entered the tarmac from fokker gate. This led to an exchange of fire between ASF personnel and the gunmen.
Gunshots and blasts were being heard with intervals outside the airport and flight operations have been suspended.
Two planes were partially damaged in the terrorist attack. TV footage showed one of the planes had caught fire.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif contacted DG Rangers Rizwan Akhtar and directed him to ensure safety of all the passengers at the airport.
Pakistan Army personnel have also arrived to assist ASF and other Law Enforcement Agencies.
According to DG ISPR Asim Bajwa, Pakistan Army troops have started reaching the airport and taking positions. In a series of tweets the DG ISPR added that proper coordination has being ensured for optimum effect and the DG Rangers was present at the airport leading the operation. He added that the operation was being supervised by Corps Commander.
DG ISPR, in his tweets, said all passengers in the planes have evacuated to safer places. He said he made a contact with Operational Commander at the airport who said terrorists had been contained in one area.

There's a good reason why the Pakistan cricket team plays its matches in neutral venues such as Dubai and the UAE; Pakistan is simply too volatile and dangerous.

Ask the New Zealand players who were in the Pearl Continental Hotel in Karachi in 2002 when a bomb exploded outside. Ask the Sri Lankan players who were injured after gunmen fired on their team bus in Lahore in 2009.

This morning's events show that Pakistan is still far from a safe place. Whilst it is unfortunate that their players are continually denied the opportunity to ply their trade on home soil, player safety must be paramount, and the ICC must continue to leave Pakistan off the list of places to tour.

0 The Chris Cairns saga

Herald cricket reporters Dylan Cleaver and Andrew Alderson have been well on top of the match-fixing saga. And they report that Cairns may yet face a third cricket authority making allegations against him; they report:

Chris Cairns has returned to New Zealand full of defiance, but might have another fight on his hands with the England and Wales Cricket Board investigating whether they can lay charges against him.
The former New Zealand all-rounder held a press conference at Auckland Airport upon his return from London. He read from a prepared statement and did not take questions as he left to spend "time with my family".
He said he had been interviewed by the Metropolitan Police, the ICC's anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU) and the ECB.
"At my own request, I was interviewed by representatives of Metropolitan Police, the ECB and the ICC anti-corruption unit," Cairns said yesterday. "This is in relation to an allegation I perjured myself at the trial Cairns v Modi in 2012, and separate allegations by the ICC's anti-corruption unit that I am a match-fixer. I was not arrested or otherwise detained in London and I have not been charged with any offence, criminal or otherwise."

This is the first time the ECB has been connected to discussions concerning Cairns.
The UK Telegraph last night reported that the ECB was taking legal advice over whether it could charge Cairns with alleged match-fixing offences, giving it jurisdiction over and above the ICC.
It is understood an ECB anti-corruption official sat in on discussions with the ACSU but John Rhodes, the ICC official who took testimony from McCullum, did not.

It is the ECB which has taken the lead and charged Lou Vincent with match-fixing with regard to allegations concerning two English county matches. The ECB seems, at the moment, to be more pro-active than its parent body, the ICC.

It was interesting too that Cairns lashed out against Vincent and his former wife, and has named former New Zealand captains Daniel Vettori and Stephen Fleming, and current ODI player Kyle Mills, whose brother Heath is head honcho of the NZ Cricket Players' Association. The Herald story continues:

Cairns yesterday emphasised that he rejected all the allegations against him, describing the testimony of Vincent and his ex-wife, Elly Riley, as "despicable lies" and questioning why it took McCullum three years to report the approach.
Along with Vincent and McCullum, former national captains Stephen Fleming and Daniel Vettori and fast bowler Kyle Mills were yesterday named as those who have given statements to investigators. Cairns said two were to confirm that McCullum told them he had been approached by Cairns, but one's memory was too "foggy" to back up that assertion.
"It is also significant that none of those players seem to have spoken to anyone at the ICC or any other organisation about my alleged conversation with Mr McCullum until this year, 2014," Cairns said.
"As a result of my trip to London, I now also understand that no person has made any statements to support the allegations Mr Vincent and his ex-wife have sought to level against me. There are also no allegations that I ever received any monies for my alleged activities, nor paid any monies to any person."

Regular readers will know how we feel about this case. Chris Cairns is entitled to be presumed innocent of any wrongdoing until such time as it is proven. But it is hard to ignore the weight of testimony. The obligation of cricket authorities and possibly the Metropolitan Police will be to prove the allegations.

There was however one red herring thrown out by Cairns; Cricifo reports:

Cairns claimed the interviews in London were conducted at his own request and dealt with allegations he had perjured himself during the Cairns v Modi trial in 2012, and separate allegations of match-fixing.

"I was not arrested or otherwise detained in London and I have not been charged with any offence, criminal or otherwise," Cairns said. "I repeat that each and every allegation against me, that I have cheated at cricket or attempted to induce others to cheat at cricket, is false." 

Cairns' statement that he was "not arrested or otherwise detained" is obfuscation. He was given a guarantee before he left New Zealand that he would not be arrested or detained at this point in the investigation, so it is somewhat disingenuous of him to claim that because he returned to New Zealand as a free man, he has somehow been vindicated. If Cairns is to be vindicated, that moment is still some distance away.

We will continue to follow this story with much interest. As we have said many times, match-fixing is a blight on the noble game of cricket, and those who are found to have participated in it will deserve whatever punishment they receive. There is no place for them in the sport.

0 Photo of the Day - 25 May 2014

Chris Cairns flew out to London yesterday where he will be interviewed by the Metropolitan Police over allegations of match-fixing. The Herald must have missed him at the airport, because we doubt this is his mode of transport:

The recent leaking of the testimonies of Lou Vincent, Brendon McCullum and Elly Riley has clearly expedited this investigation. And the Herald has some questions which need answers:

Once Cairns has negotiated his way through Heathrow Airport this afternoon (NZ time), he will get the opportunity to address several issues that have puzzled, confused and intrigued cricket fans, most notably:
1. What motive could Brendon McCullum have inventing fictitious testimony against Cairns?
2. What does Cairns know about the contents of a recording between Lou Vincent and Cairns' friend and former legal adviser Andrew Fitch-Holland discussing match-fixing by Cairns' Indian Cricket League team the Chandigarh Lions. The exact details of the recording, taken before Cairns' successful 2012 defamation case against former Indian Premier League impresario Lalit Modi, are unknown.
3. Who or where are the "dark forces at play" which Cairns referred to in an earlier statement?
4. How does he explain the testimony from Vincent's ex-wife Elly Riley?

Interesting times await as this situation escalates. We have just one more question; does Chris Cairns have an open-ended return ticket?

0 Millmow on Vincent and Cairns

Jonathan Millmow is a former first class cricketer turned journalist. He played a handful of ODI's for New Zealand around 1990.

Millmow has written a very interesting opinion-piece in today's Dom-Post; under the headline Dark days as spotlight turns on Cairns he writes:

Match-fixing has cost Lou Vincent his reputation, the most important thing a man possesses.
Jail is possible, but seems unlikely, so he is now an outcast.
Vincent is the most unlikely of villains, his weakness his own susceptibility.
He suffers from depression and, for many of us, the impact of that is hard to comprehend.
He is a flighty individual. His interviews with media during his international playing career contained humour but lacked conviction.
His happiest time was out in the middle but otherwise touring life was lonely work.
He was company for 30 minutes but not 30 days and, for him, a game with the kids behind the boundary rope held more appeal than 30 minutes in the sponsors' tent.
Vincent could strike a hundred or run his partner out first ball. Some days he took blinding catches; other days he'd drop a dolly on the boundary. He was wildly inconsistent, not that anyone ever suspected he was quietly feathering his nest.
In the end, he took the crooked path of fixing matches and now must pay a yet-to-be-determined penalty.
Vincent will need good people around him for years to come and maybe life can start again like a forest after a fire.
This is chapter one in what shapes as a shameful period for cricket, and New Zealand in particular. 

The opening sentence of this piece says it all. Lou Vincent's reputation is shot. He has been exposed as a corrupt cricketer and a cheat. 

His international cricket career began with a flourish when he scored a century on test debut against Australia in Perth. But his career will end in ignominy, with the almost certainty of a life ban from any further involvement in the game he professed to love. He may salvage something from the wreckage by taking others down with him, but that pales into insignificance with the gravity of his cheating.

And then Millmow moves on to chapter two; the one about Chris Cairns:

The spotlight now switches to Chris Cairns. Vincent is yesterday and today's news but Cairns is tomorrow's.
Cairns was a hero but no-one remembers his lofted straight sixes and brisk outswingers these days.
It's not looking good for Cairns. He has been mentioned as the match-fixing ringleader by at least three witnesses - accusations he denies in the strongest terms.
Brendon McCullum's affidavit of two approaches from Cairns in 2008 seems telling. Cairns bats him away as liar.
I know which corner I'm in.
Cairns is defiant in the same way as Lance Armstrong was in his failed fight against performance-enhancing drugs.
There are massive implications for Cairns on what transpires from here.
He won a London High Court libel trial in 2012 against former IPL boss Lalit Modi, who accused Cairns of match-fixing.
Cairns faces a possible jail sentence for perjury if Vincent's allegations are proven.
In 2001, millionaire British novelist Jeffrey Archer was sentenced to four years in jail for perjury. 

Like Jonathan Millmow, we've decided which corner we are in. Chris Cairns has made the choice pretty clear. If you believe his denials, then Lou Vincent, Brendon McCullum and Elly Riley, Vincent's ex-wife are all telling lies.

At the risk of repeating ourselves ad infinitum, cricket authorities or the police must make a case against Christopher Cairns, and prove their allegations beyond a reasonable doubt. We understand that there will be news to report on that front later today, but that will remain the subject of a later case.

We've read a lot about the Lance Armstrong case. Armstrong vilified his critics, who included author and journalist David Walsh, Betsy Andreu, the wife of a former Armstrong team-mate, and Emma O'Reilly, his former soigneur. We know how that all turned out when the evidence against Armstrong became so overwhelming that he made a tearful confession to Oprah Winfrey.

Chris Cairns was a very good player for New Zealand, although at times in his career he was a reluctant one. But if he is proved to have been involved in any way, shape or form in match-fixing, his reputation will be akin to that of Vincent's; destroyed.

Match-fixing and spot-fixing are like a pair of highly malignant cancers on the game of cricket. The sooner the tumours are completely excised, and a way is found to prevent a recurrence of the cancer the better.

0 Vincent charged with match-fixing

Another day; another twist in cricket's match-fixing drama. Former New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent has been formally charged with match-fixing by the England Cricket Board; Cricinfo reports:

The ECB has charged former Sussex players Lou Vincent and Naved Arif with alledged match-fixing in county cricket.

Vincent is charged with 14 offences relating to two matches; a Twenty20 match between Sussex and Lancashire and a 40 over game between Sussex and Kent at Hove. Arif is charged with six offences in relation to the 40-over game between Sussex and Kent in August 2011.

Sussex lost the CB40 game in question by 15 runs, with Arif conceding 41 runs in six overs without a wicket, and Vincent being run out for 1 off seven balls. The T20 match was a quarter-final, which Lancashire won by 20 runs. Vincent was caught behind first ball off Sajid Mahmood in the Sussex chase.

The result cost them a semi-final spot. In November 2012, Sussex had confirmed that the ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) had investigated the match.

Both players have been provisionally suspended from all cricketing activities organised, authorised or supported by the ECB, ICC, any other national cricket federation and any member of any other national cricket federation.

Chris Watts, head of ECB's Anti-Corruption unit, said: "This has been an extremely complex and lengthy investigation co-ordinated across many jurisdictions around the world. This matter is now the subject of formal legal proceedings and we will therefore make no further comment other than to reiterate our determination to bring to account the very small minority who seek to corrupt cricket."

ECB chief executive David Collier added: "The ECB's ACCESS unit has worked tirelessly in conjunction with the ICC's ACSU to bring about these charges, which once again demonstrates the ECB's zero-tolerance approach to corruption in our great game." 

The story goes on to detail what triggered the investigation:

The Daily Telegraph, which initially reported the story, said the Sussex-Kent match attracted bets totalling more than £12million on one legal gambling website alone, the highest total for any match of its kind in the past three years, which drew suspicions at the time but was cleared by the ICC's anti-corruption unit only for the case to be later reopened by the ECB.  

It is interesting that this match was initially cleared by the ICC's anti-corruption unit, but that the ECB's ACCESS unit has found sufficient evidence to bring charges against Vincent and Naved Asif. It makes us wonder somewhat at the competence of the ACSU.

If these allegations against Vincent are proven, he will likely as not face a life ban from any involvement in cricket. Even if his testimony brings down some of those further up the match-fixing chain, it is a sad end to what could have been a very good career. 

There is no place in cricket for those who succumb to the temptation of big bucks and corrupt the great sport.

0 More on cricket's cancer

The allegations of involvement of former New Zealand players in match-fixing continue to swirl around the cricketing world. And on face value, the leaked testimony of Lou Vincent's former wife is damaging, on all sorts of levels; Stuff reports:

Chris Cairns continues to protest his innocence amid more evidence against him being disclosed, this time from Lou Vincent's ex-wife, alleging he was a cricket match-fixing ringleader.
Cairns' name was publicly linked with sworn evidence to International Cricket Council investigators for the first time today, as the former New Zealand allrounder issued a second statement in a 12-hour period: ''I totally reject the allegations against me and I will prove this.''
The latest leaked evidence is a sworn 10-page document from Elly Riley, Vincent's ex-wife, that she provided to anti-corruption (ACSU) investigators last October. It follows leaks in the past week of former test opener Vincent's explosive 42-page testimony, and New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum's signed three-page statement, both of which are understood to name Cairns as a fixing ringleader.
Riley's evidence, reported by One News tonight, was that the fixing began at the Indian Cricket League in 2008, and that Vincent told her: ''Chris was going to pay him US$50,000 (NZ$58,000) a game for the fixing.''
Vincent was soon confronted by a stranger with a suitcase full of money, but two weeks later things went awry, Riley said in her evidence.
''I got a phone call from Lou and he was crying, saying he'd just lost Chris Cairns US$250,000 or something like that because he got things wrong.''
Riley alleged the fixing continued in English county cricket, and the more players that were involved, the more money Cairns would receive.
She confronted Cairns during a night out in Manchester in 2008. He told her they were safe, everyone did it (fixing) and no one would get caught.
''I said that you're involving so many players - you're involving the whole team and by doing that you're getting greedy. I just can't see how information on the fixing is not going to leak out to others and you're not going to get caught,'' Riley said in evidence.
''Chris said that I was right, but told me not to worry as he had it all under control. Chris just sort of laughed it off.'' 

Once again we reiterate what we said yesterday. These are allegations only, and Chris Cairns must still be considered innocent until he has been proven otherwise.

But the allegations are hugely damaging to the integrity of the sport of cricket; once regarded as the most noble of all ball sports. It has become clear that match-fixing is not just the preserve of players from India and Pakistan, with Lou Vincent having admitted his involvement, and an English county player having given a sworn testimony against Chris Cairns. How deep does the rot go?

Match-fixing and spot-fixing are a cancer on cricket. Radical treatment is required if the patient is ever to have a chance at some sort of normality, but the prognosis for cricket is extremely guarded at the moment.

0 The Herald names Player X

The NZ Herald has named Player X:

The Herald can reveal that the player being named as Player X in evidence to the international cricket inquiry is New Zealand legend Chris Cairns.
The Herald has been told by multiple sources that the former allrounder has been named in testimony to the ICC's anti-corruption unit (ACSU), referred to as Player X, by Lou Vincent and current captain Brendon McCullum.
He is alleged to have attempted to manipulate games, including in India when he was captain of the Chandigarh Lions in the short lived Indian Cricket League.
Cairns was let go by Chandigarh, due to what he described as an ankle injury.
In recent days, testimony from Vincent and McCullum has been leaked into the public domain, including alleged meetings between those players and Cairns.
When asked by the Herald on Sunday whether he was Player X, Cairns said he did not want to "speculate" but last night told Fairfax - Cairns was recently a columnist for the Sunday Star-Times - the allegations were false.

First up, let's get one thing straight. The allegations against Chris Cairns are just that; allegations. He is entitled to the chance to clear his name, and any allegations must be proven.

But if the allegations against Cairns are true, he is in deep, deep trouble. And he will have no one to blame but himself.

The next few weeks and months are going to be both interesting and distressing as cricket continues to unravel. That saddens us immensely.

0 Cairns: If I'm Player X, McCullum's lying

The murky world of cricket match-fixing got murkier overnight. Chris Cairns has put out what Stuff describes as an "explosive" statement suggesting that if he is the mysterious Player X, NZ captain Brendon McCullum has been lying; check this out:

Chris Cairns has emerged swinging, saying if he is 'Player X' then match-fixing claims attributed to New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum are "a complete lie".
Cairns released an explosive statement to Fairfax Media tonight in response to an interview given by McCullum to the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU), which was leaked to the Daily Mail. McCullum told investigators that a star international player had twice approached him in 2008 to request he fix matches, and said he could earn over $200,000 per match. McCullum said he rejected the offer.
Cairns maintained his innocence and insisted "dark forces" were at play.
"I am aware that former cricketer Lou Vincent and current New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum have made a range of allegations against a cricketer dubbed Player X," Cairns' statement said.
"It is well known that the ICC/ACSU has been investigating allegations of corruption and my name has been linked by others to these allegations. I am being asked whether I am Player X.
"Based on the limited information I have received during this investigation, I believe it is being alleged that I am that player. These allegations against me are a complete lie." 

We don't know who to believe any more. Cairns obviously thought McCullum's accusations in his ACSU interview were so specific they could only have referred to him. New Zealand Cricket is aware of the identity of Player X, but will not name him, for obvious reasons. 

The story is not going to go away. If, and we stress the word "if" any current or former New Zealand player is found to have participated in match-fixing or spot-fixing, they must, Lou Vincent included, be banished from cricket permanently.

As we have mentioned in the past, cricket is our first and most enduring sporting love. Our first memory of live first class cricket is watching a young Glenn Turner grind out three runs in a two-hour session against Central Districts at Cook's Gardens in Wanganui 50 years ago. These days, Turner would be accused of spot-fixing!

We played our first competitive cricket match in 1966. In the years since we have been a player, administrator, umpire and spectator. We continue to love test cricket in particular. but the abbreviated format of cricket, especially T20, is losing its allure. That is especially sad with the creme of the world's cricket talent set to grace New Zealand early next year for the ICC World Cup.

Do we have confidence in the ICC to get to the bottom of all this, and stamp out match-fixing and spot-fixing? In a word, no. It is time that these allegations were investigated by an organisation completely distanced from cricket. This is organised crime on a massive scale, given some of the numbers bandied around.

This is fast heading towards cricket's darkest hour. As lifelong cricket tragics, we despise what is going on in the sport. The game we love will never be quite the same again.

0 Who is Player X?

The cricket match-fixing allegations get murkier by the day; the Herald reports:

New Zealand Cricket have released a statement this afternoon to express their dismay that Brendon McCullum's testimony to the International Cricket Council has been leaked to the media.
"We can confirm that Brendon is not under investigation by the ICC and his testimony has actually been applauded by them," the statement read.
"NZC has 100 per cent confidence in our captain and his role in tackling corruption."
Details of the match-fixing offer made to, and rebuffed by, the New Zealand captain have been leaked to media.
The approach, first reported by the Herald on Friday, is part of the ICC's investigation into match-fixing.

Whilst it is clear that Brendon McCullum reported the approach from Player X to cricket authorities, it is less certain when this happened. New Zealand cricket fans need to be reassured that there was no undue delay.

And here's how the fix worked:

McCullum was interviewed recently by the ICC's anti-corruption unit and, according to cricket corruption expert Ed Hawkins in the Daily Mail, has testified that he was offered more than $200,000 to fix games.

He met a "former international star" in a café in Worcester while on tour with New Zealand in 2008, when the offer was tabled. According to testimony, the former star said that "the big boys" in international cricket were doing it.
McCullum has also revealed that he was first approached in Kolkata during the 2008 IPL and asked the cricketer how the mechanics of it worked.
"Using the piece of paper X explained the basic principles which were to score below a certain rate for the first six or so overs and then towards the end of the game there was another split. X told me he had done this himself," said McCullum, according to testimony.
"[He] told me that potentially he could get for me from between US$70,000-US$180,000.
"X told me he had a good group working for him in the ICL and I understand this to mean fixing for him. It was my opinion then, as it is now, that X was actively concerned in fixing... I believed he was asking me to do the same thing for him in the IPL as others were doing in the ICL."
McCullum was told he could launder the money through property deals in Dubai. The name of a contact was provided.
Once McCullum had rebuffed that approach, the same cricketer then cornered him in Worcester to ask him if he had changed his mind.
"He was a hero who became a friend so I always found it difficult to say no," McCullum told investigators.

Player X has yet to be identified. But until he is, a good number of players and former players are unfairly under suspicion.

Player X was obviously a high profile player if he was a hero of McCullum's, and the fact that he became a friend suggests their careers intersected. We have our own suspicions, but if they prove to be groundless, then it simply underlines our point.

Not every international player has been involved in match-fixing or spot-fixing. Unfortunately the actions of a few have cast a huge shadow over everyone, and worse still, over the wonderful sport of cricket.

The sooner the identity of Player X is revealed, the better for all concerned, and for the sport.

0 Another view on fixing

We met A Cricketing Buddha when we were at the New Zealand vs England test match at Eden Park last summer. He, like us, is a cricket tragic. And at Donning the Whites with Grace he has blogged his thoughts on the latest revelations over cricket's blight; match-fixing and spot-fixing; he opines:

In the past two days I have taken a close interest in the views of those I follow via various social media channels in respect of fixing in cricket. Many, whilst saddened, believe that recent revelations are a step forward - a clear opportunity to begin to purge our once great game of those who use it as their personal play thing, a sporting stock exchange rife with insider trading.

However, others assert that spot fixing is a victimless crime, should be excused if the protagonists suffer from mental illness or if those involved are not well remunerated for their core role as a cricketer. Many of them previously complained loudly of the corruption and mismanagement within the ICC, the BCCI and the ascension of the "big three" - are these instances that far removed from fixing?

Victimless? What of team mates and associations who miss out on the chance for victory or prize money, fans who become disillusioned with their sport - nay passion, or those who legally ply their trade betting on sport?

I am loathe to even acknowledge the mental illness defence. Yes, it clouds one's judgement - the highs often higher and the lows subterranean. Yet have crickets many and varied stars who are often attacked by the vicious black dog given in en masse to the "temptations" of the fix? For those who believe mental illness is a worthy excuse, does it also rationalise the actions of corrupt officials, financial fraudsters and common thieves?

I understand the resentment many have at the seemingly inadequate remuneration of their profession, chosen or otherwise. But in does not, and never should, excuse defrauding that profession for personal gain.

I once adored our great game, not a pastime or a hobby, more an obsession. The last two days have drawn me further away - cricket is becoming more background noise than the lead singer belting out his requiem front and centre.

This is a very interesting and thought-provoking piece. The more we have seen and heard over the last few days, the deeper it seems that cricket's shame is embedded.

It's all terribly sad that the heart of cricket, personal integrity, has been stripped away in this manner. The ICC faces a Herculean task to restore credibility to the game we love.

0 The match-fixing scandal

Match-fixing and spot-fixing are a blight on sport, and especially on cricket. And former New Zealand player Lou Vincent has blown the whistle on what sounds like a reasonably significant dose of corruption in cricket; the Herald reports:

Investigations into cricket match-fixing allegations have taken a twist, with the revelation New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum rebuffed an approach to manipulate a game.
No details on dates or games have been confirmed, but multiple sources have corroborated the approach.
The Herald understands International Cricket Council anti-corruption officers interviewed and he confirmed being approached.
During a hastily arranged press conference at NZ Cricket headquarters in Auckland yesterday, an attempt was made to pin chief executive David White down on a possible McCullum connection.
"Sorry, I cannot say any more as it could jeopardise further investigations," White said.
The press conference was called to respond to a story in London's Daily Telegraph that suggested former Black Cap Lou Vincent was seeking a plea bargain for full disclosure of his involvement in spot- and match-fixing.

McCullum is playing in the Indian Premier League for the Chennai Super Kings. It is understood he immediately and emphatically rejected the approach. Approached by the Herald last night, he had no comment.
White did confirm that matches involving the Auckland Aces in South Africa at the 2012 Champions League - an international Twenty20 competition - were under anti-corruption investigation, a story broken in the Herald in December.
"No games played in New Zealand are being investigated by the ICC," White said. "No current Black Caps are being investigated. No matches involving New Zealand national
"However, we have been informed by the ICC that some Auckland Aces matches in the Champions League in South Africa in 2012 are being investigated.

Regular readers will be aware that of all the sports we follow, cricket is our first love. The manner in which the whole sport has been brought into disrepute by dodgy, shady characters seeking to make a profit is heart-breaking.

Lou Vincent deserves some credit for coming forward and being completely open about his involvement, and that of players around him. The bookies target vulnerable players, and Vincent, with his history of depression certainly fits that profile. That does not in any way excuse his participation in anything illegal, if that is what he has admitted. But by breaking ranks and fronting up, he may help to identify some of those who are pulling the strings of players around the globe.

Cricket used to be the gentleman's game. These days, there is a dark cloud over the sport due to the illegal activities of those prepared to hang the game out to dry for the sake of a quick buck. On one hand we condemn Lou Vincent for succumbing to temptation, but on the other we commend him for being honest about his involvement, and for trying to put things right.

0 A very welcome move

Match-fixing is a blight on sport, and especially on cricket, the gentlemen's game. So we are delighted to see the Government about to take some meaningful action; the Herald reports:

Match-fixing will become a crime in New Zealand.
Sport and Recreation Minister Murray McCully announced yesterday that an amendment would be made to the Crimes Act to ensure serious forms of match-fixing would be subject to criminal sanctions.
"New Zealand is not immune to the international risks of match-fixing and we are taking pre-emptive steps to protect our well-deserved reputation for playing fair and the integrity of New Zealand sport," Mr McCully said.
"We have released the New Zealand Policy on Sports Match-Fixing and Related Corruption and announced plans to amend the Crimes Act 1961 to ensure the most serious form of match-fixing is a criminal offence.
"The national match-fixing policy provides a comprehensive framework for collaboration across Government, the sport sector and the betting industry to address match-fixing risks to New Zealand sport," he said.
"An important component of the policy is ensuring we have a strong legal framework around match-fixing, and ensuring it is subject to criminal sanctions."

With the ICC World Cup due to be held in New Zealand early in 2015, this is a significant move by Murray McCully. It sends a message to the international community that match-fixing will not be tolerated in New Zealand, and that there will be criminal sanctions as well as those dished out by the sport in question.

Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle is a fan. He has sent out this tweet to his 1.2 million followers:

Sadly, much of the illegal activity in cricket has its origins in the India subcontinent.But sportsmen from throughout the world have fallen into the clutches of the bookies and their dodgy mates. Even right now, former New Zealand representatives Lew Vincent, Daryl Tuffey and Chris Cairns are being investigated by the ICC's anti-corruption unit over allegations of involvement in match-fixing.

Cricket is our first and most enduring sporting love, and watching the game descend into corruption is deeply saddening. We commend the Government for this initiative, which is a very welcome move.