The Spot Fixing Saga 1 Year on : Recall That Day

[Saj]

Personally speaking it was a very bizarre day for me. Mixed emotions and some strange discussions.

I'll talk about it more tomorrow.

So how was that day for you when the news broke?

Your first reaction?

How did you hear about the news?

Your emotions and mood during that day and the coming days?

[Poison]

Terrible day.

Pakistan were getting battered.

Could tell almost immediately that it could not be fake.

Has been in back of mind ever since. Wore Pakistan jersey to gym a couple weeks afterwards, snide comments all round.

[NJamal]

I was happy that at last we will get rid of a poor player Like Butt.

Was sad for Aamer though.

[sully3]

i was waiting on the tube station, i remember opening pak passion on my mobile phone internet browser and all hell had broken loose.

my 1st reaction was, 'for the love of god i hope amir is not involved in any of this' and then there it was as the web page loaded his name alongside butt and asif.

still have the same emotions or a question, why amir why?

[Sir_Afridi]

The day when cricket lost greatest prospect for all time

[Waq]

I was at Lords for that Test on day 1. I remember a lean period when England were batting but Amir managed a break through or two. The day was generally full of rain.

I then found out about via PP and then remember being clued for weeks to the site for updates and even checking for updates on the NOTW website.

I was used to Pakistan cricket and the PCB embarassing us but this incident was the pinnacle after Bob Woolmer, Oath Gate, Sri Lanka bus attack etc etc.

This forum is now worse of due to great posters like Oxy leaving and I cannot blame them. I still love PakPassion but enjoy time pass and sports corner and rarely follow what is happening in the cricketing world involving Pakistan. The recent Eng v India series was much more pleasurable than the 2011 WC.

The whole saga will no doubt continue as the court case is now round the corner in October.

[Markhor]

Is it really one year on ?

That evening will stay with me for the rest of my life. However the fixing allegations had been swirling around for so long, Sarfraz Nawaz was making statements week after week.

I heard something about fixing on the radio and I flicked on BBC News and Pakistan cricket was mentioned, our team were in the spotlight in front of the whole world.

The names immediately came to mind - Akmal brothers, Malik and Asif.

1 out of 3 - Salman Butt, Asif and Mohammad Aamer. I went on PP and the forum went ballistic. Posters were extremely emotional, IIRC someone wanted them flogged But emotions ran really high that day amongst Pakistan fans.

Sky News said that a few men in tracksuits were arrested and taken away for questioning - that really struck home, to what depths we had sunk to.

Ijaz Butt was nowhere to be seen, and only gave a statement after a few days. The media was in uproar, I have never seen anything like it. Very uncomfortable and unnerving to see Pakistani cricketers in the media spotlight to such an extent. You have to think what the psychological affects may be on the younger players on that tour.

Inshallah, nothing ever like that will happen again. Pakistan cricket was very lucky to survive after that, there were calls for us to be banned from cricket until we got our house in order.

One would hope we learn our lessons from that.

[Poison]

The only good thing I guess from that entire period post-fixing was the fight shown by the side in the ODI series. Was very heartening.

[Waq]

I still remember our embarassment of a high commisioner for the Pakistan embassy in the UK. His statements were cringeworthy.

How about our old tour management and their lack of leadership?

I was half expecting Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz to be caught up in the scandal but did not really materialise - yet!

I then went to the Lords ODI versus England with a demoralised Pakistan team and how they showed heart by winning convincingly.

It was quite a summer for everyone and time certainly does fly.

One of my fondest memories of summer 2010 is having a chat with Asif whilst he was warming up at the Oval before the start of play. He was wearing a vest top and playing football and I commented on how skinny he is and whether he actually eats. He assured me that he was one of the biggest eaters in the squad! This team beat England in that game and even Wahab took 6 wickets and the whole scandal just felt so unnecessary considering our fire power.

[Zaz]

Remember it vividly! Had a lie in that day, pakistan were getting hammered so didnt bother waking early

Must have been half 11 by the time i gt up, went to check score on my phone and saw the news

Got up as a shot, went down and couldnt believe what i ws hearing, total shock and dismay

I knew it as soon as i read the news that the idiots are gonna have the book thrown at them and rightly so

Still cant believe what they did, i had tickets for the odi series and felt cheated. Went to the games although grudgingly

My heart was not in it anymore

[AZ]

What was even worse was that some clowns - who are still very much here - were stating that WE were in on the fix and were in cahoots with the fixers!

The forum was absolutely jammed that fateful night in Ramzan, and people made all sorts of ridiculous statements.

As for the team itself, completely destroyed my belief in them, will never support a player like that again.

[Waq]

Originally Posted by AZ What was even worse was that some clowns - who are still very much here - were stating that WE were in on the fix and were in cahoots with the fixers!

I certainly remember those remarks or statements. Highly embarassing for me as I consider myself a guest and the host are PP. You do not go to somebody's house and accuse them of all sorts of nonsense.

It certainly was hectic on the forums.

By the way AZ, how many shares did Mazhar Majeed give you in Croydon football club?

[Markhor]

Originally Posted by AZ that fateful night in Ramzan

Another reason why it was so disgraceful, during Ramadan too and a week after the floods. People were saying that Pakistanis were drowning in dirty floodwater and these players are trying to make a quick buck.

Here was the thread - http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/sh...d.php?t=104121

After an hour or so there was already 300 posts.

[Fireworks11]

First heard about it on Sky News breaking news. Utterly shocked. NOTW the following morning was quite a read. It was very embarrassing.

[Savak]

I remember the floods, Pakistan appealing to the international community for aid, our President going on a European tour, shopping for palaces, only to be ordered by the US to get his behind to Pakistan asap. Very shocking and embarrassing moment for Pakistan. Worst of all, we lost Asif and Aamir for good.

[duostyle]

Ah yes, I remember when all hell broke loose. The emergence of Amir finally made me join PP as I had been longing for a bowler like Akram to appear ever since he retired. I remember following from the third Test onwards here, where we had just made a comeback of sorts and were hopeful for the last Test. Sadly, that Broad-Trott partnership happened and we suffered another batting collapse and were already down in the second innings at end of day 3.

This is when, while was casually browsing PP late at night, the first allegation thread appeared (I think it was through Twitter). My reaction was quite something when I read that young Amir was involved. I remember staying up almost the entire night frantically refreshing PP trying to get further details – after that when that infamous image of Majeed sitting in front of the cash pile came out along with the whole story, a lot of posters were in denial and were chasing conspiracy theories. In each of the following days, more arrests and other stuff happened. A lot of other accusations appeared on past matches/players and such. I recall participating in legal discussions (remember Waq’s brilliant posts) to ‘guess’ the outcome of all this on the trio and particularly Amir.

Time has gone by fast, we’ve regrouped and performed well since then (something which was unimaginable after such a debacle) but that scandal has in long term harmed us because we lost a bowler of such high calibre in Asif and some potential learning years for Amir. Most of all, it put huge doubts over the integrity of our cricket team and players.

[Namak_Halaal]

Was browsing BBC website when the news broke out on the Breaking News Ticker. As soon as I read Amir's name I had my head in my hands.

[cricketpassion]

It was shocking day ,First instance I thought media making up story , never thought it will be such a big issue but later on found out that is serious .

Later on When I found out, it was amir who was involved made me cry .It was very emberessing moment

[BoomBoomCricket]

It’s been exactly a year since the NOTW publications regarding the spot fixing scandal were revealed. It was this weekend last year. A gloomy day at Lords in more ways than one as Michael Atherton mentioned on commentary on the final day of the test series when the players made their way out to the middle on the back of high suspiciousness.

Pakistan didn’t even bother going out to train that morning, the situation got so bad. An unforgettable history which damaged the game and country’s integrity. An all time low for the cricket mad nation.

Since that date the trio obviously have never appeared for their country again, received minimum 5 year bans all around which was the outcome of the hearing in Doha in February, been banned from playing domestic and club cricket associated with respective country boards and face an ongoing criminal trial in court which they have been busy preparing for. Could Pakistan cricket get any lower?

However, in perspective there is of course the argument that this was a minor victory for the game in the sense that awareness was raised, realisation began to kick in & serious measures could be adopted to prevent these things from occurring in the future. It was a wakeup call for governing bodies, fellow players, fans in denial and authorities. Hopefully things can only get better from here on in and the the lowest times have past for this beloved game we all so passionately follow.

[talha3]

I woke up early in the morning and found out on sky sports news. At the time I actually didn't believe it. 1 year on, it is still the 2nd darkest day I've witnessed in Pakistan cricket (first being lahore attacks).

[BoomBoomCricket]

I was sickened. The performance that day when Pakistan was following on at Lords was bad enough, but this just added to the woes even further. I didn’t want to believe, but I was completely convinced about the reality. By the end of the day I didn’t want any of the 3 playing in the ODI series and was hoping they would be ruled out somehow. I remember there were ppl on here arguing the video was taken after the no balls and mentioning the “innocent until proven guilty" tag all along.

[Gotham Cronie]

Holding's reaction sums it up for me.

[talha3]

^^ still remember that too. sad moment.

[emclub]

didnt believe it for many months, was in denial

[Pk-zindabaad]

Yaar stop making me sad Saj bhai

[KingKhanWC]

I remember finding it very strange Amir bowling a huge no ball while watching the test match. When the news broke it was obvious, no denial at all.

If it wasn't Amir it wouldn't have been as bad since fixing was nothing new to cricket and Pakistan cricket.

[MVP26]

Never knew that aamer would be involved in these kind of things. Was really disheartened

[jazbati]

I was coming back from work and my fiance told me this on phone. She doesn't know much about cricket so I was like it must be some sort of allegation as Sarfaraz Nawaz and other seniors are used to making these kind of statements.

When I got home, my fear was turned into reality. I was really disappointed for Amir and Asif, not so much for Salman Butt. He was not a special player .. Hope it never happens again. I'm ready to take a Pakistan defeat but not all this ..

[AZ]

Originally Posted by Waq I certainly remember those remarks or statements. Highly embarassing for me as I consider myself a guest and the host are PP. You do not go to somebody's house and accuse them of all sorts of nonsense. It certainly was hectic on the forums. By the way AZ, how many shares did Mazhar Majeed give you in Croydon football club?

What can I say, the imaginations of some ran a little too wild that day.

Didn't take shares Waq bhai, straight cash for me!

[1137moiz]

I was in a bad mood because our TV, Internet, everything wasn't working. That evening we went to visit a family friend for Iftar (hoping to catch some highlights) and were surprised to find the allegations. Initially I thought it was another 92--bitter Pommie media--and when I heeard about Mazhar Majeed I remembered Pakpassion's Azhar Majeed interview and thought, "The bloody fools (NOTW) have mixed up the names; what a giveaway".

It was a blackly comic series thereon. But I HUGELY enjoyed the LOI series, I don't think any Pakistan win has made me happier than those routs in London. It was that bleak

[Watsupdoc]

Was down all day... Couldn't believe they could do this...

[cricketworm]

Tabloid newspaper set up trap. Players and stupid Majeed were too thick in the head to accept money that it will be freaken trap. No-one gives you this much money for bowling no-balls. Stupidity. I will miss :Asif

[Saj]

Where do I start !

Mentally this whole thing took a real toll having been close to at least 2 of the players.

That weekend my family and I were in London sightseeing. We had a great time and the day went by so quickly. I remember as we got into the car on Saturday evening to return home I checked my Blackberry and noticed the battery was almost dead, so just turned the phone off.

My daughters were very tired in the car and after listening to a couple of songs they went to sleep. I therefore turned off the CD player and the radio and just concentrated on getting home as soon as possible.

We got home in the early hours of Sunday morning, oblivious to what was going on. I put my phone on charge and just went straight to bed.

I awoke on Sunday morning just before the start of play and turned on my phone. Almost at the same time I turned on the television expecting the commentators to be talking about the upcoming day's play.

When I turned on my phone I had about 50 missed calls and hundreds of texts......I knew something wasn't right even before reading my texts and listening to voicemail messages.

Turning the television on, there was David Gower and I think Ian Botham sat with newspapers in hand. The tv cameras kept on going to the Pakistan team sat on the balcony and to Yawar and co sat reading the newspaper.

I simply couldn't believe it especially when I recognised the face on the front of the newspaper.

Then as I gathered my thoughts and understood what had happened, I went and bought an edition of the NOTW.

To say it was heartbreaking was an understatement. I simply couldn't believe it, here were men in a newspaper who I had spent a fair amount of time with during the course of the summer, spoken to regularly etc

As the day progressed my phone didn't stop, there was quite a bit of confusion also with various stories going around (some true and some false).

In the days and weeks after the spot fixing revelations, various members of the media contacted me, local and international. A number of Indian media phoned me too especially after PP was on Star News to arrange interviews, but frankly I wasn't interested.

I had calls from some idiots making threats, other idiots linking myself to the whole spot fixing case. Some posters on PP became a bit too hyperactive and started accusing myself and PakPassion of being involved in the whole saga, which was frankly pathetic and immature.

All in all it was a horrible time for Pakistan cricket, a sad time too, an uncomfortable time to be associated with Pakistan cricket and personally speaking a very difficult time too.

I don't think I will ever get over that day and the days that followed !

[DHONI183]

I remember I was asleep and my brother suddenly came to the room to break this terrible news. I could not believe till I read it myself.

[Atif]

Well the news first broke on PP and I rememember asking the opening poster to provide a link to the source and was then told to watch Sky News.

I could not believe what I was seeing and reading on the news and did not want to believe it either.

I stayed up till 4am that night watching the news, texting mates and reading the thread related to the scandal.

Was surprised at the stupidity of small minority of PP members accusing PP of being involved with this, ***?

It wasn't till the morning, the news really sunk in and was sad Amir was involved.

Anyway a year later I still support Pakistan just as much as I did then and will continue to do so.

Pakistan Zindabad !

[Bullet Drive]

Dark dark day...

[Radiance Of Australis]

I found it out after Iftar. I logged on to FB first, saw some posts and a link to the NOTW website reporting it all. What I read was just bizarre in my eyes. I read the first few lines and then everything went a weird blur. I didn't read then, just scrolled down blindly, catching a few sentences here and there.

I turned away from the PC and told my family members sitting there...'Pakistani players fixing mai pakray gayay'. It didn't feel as if it was the truth. I mean fans use the phrase , 'It was fixed' ,half-jokingly as an excuse for losing a match. But it then turned into reality.
I then started reading the article properly ...I don't know how many times I did so. I visited so many news websites to confirm it, as if I did not believe what was written on that website.

PP was a mess, I commend the work done by the admins. What a chaos.

Seriously, the aftermath was worse. When it finally really dawned, it was just too depressing for words.

[Fireworks11]

There was a cold chill in the air that morning, everyone was in a state of dumbfounded daze, bizarrely there was a cricket match being played at HQ. Still remember Yawar reading the NOTW on the Lord's balcony whilst the players locked themselves in doors. Amir came out to bat amidst a frosty reception, he went back for a duck, head hanging.

The ceremony was in the historic Long Room, Amir collected his MOTS cheque, he looked a lifeless soul. It wasn't right, his face told a story. Memories of the episode remain unforgettable, almost unbelievable in all honesty. Darkest day ever.

[Stumps]

Some great posts. Very moving post Saj.

It was hard enough for fans, but to be a fan and know the people personally must have been very, very difficult.

"Please God, no" - was my reaction.....