Post of the Week # 2 : Please vote

[Zap_Brannigan]

Voting is Closed. My Two Cents "The curious codes of the gentlemen's game" is the winner of POTW#2. This is MTC's second consecutive POTW win. He wins another 10 million ICF $. Congrats!! Please Move on to POTW # 3. Not many nominations this week. 1.

Popular quotes on the fixing scandal "We cant fix our country, we cant fix our leader, we cant fix our system. Finally our boys fixed something and the entire world is up in arms. Stop it you fools..", Pakistani High commissioner on the match fixing scandal. "I dont care who these guys are, what they fixed. I demand my 10% right now...", Asif Ali Zardari, on the 150,000 pound no ball scandal. "ICC is fully committed to ridding the game of corruption. As part of our anti-corruption initiatives, we have brought in Sharad Pawar to lead this organization", Haroon Logart on ICC's commitment to eradicate match fixing. "We plan to travel immediately to Dubai and then to New York and stop on the way at Ireland. We'll have meetings everywhere", Ronnie Flannagan, the ACSU chief on ICC's short term plans to stop match fixing. "Change the whole team, change the captain, change the coaches, change all their underwears, change their gears...", Javed Miandad, when asked about his suggestions on how to eradicate fixing in Pakistani cricket. "Lets not jump to conclusions. Let justice Qyayum investigate the matter once again and the real truth will come out...", Wasim Akram on his thoughts on the accused cricketers.

2.

After having seen Pak fans react to various scandals involving Pak cricketers in the recent times (well there hasn't been any shortage), I have seen the following approach Pak fans follow through the lifecycle of the event... Pak fans' 6 step reponse to a match-fixing/ball Step 1 - Righteous Indignation: We didn't do it! We can never do it! Pakistan is the land of pure and Pakistanis are "honorable" people who can never cheat! Example - "Asif can never take drugs as this will bring shame and dishonor to the nation". Funny thing is that Pak fans believe that people outside people associate words like "honour", "integrity" etc. with Pakistan Step 2 - Innocence Proclamation: It was an accident or he is too young/innocent/simple to comprehend the meaning of his actions, or he didn't mean to cheat. Example - "Asif was given the drugs by his hakeem", or "Aamer is only 18 and too young to cheat" or "Afridi didn't mean to tamper with the ball while chewing it, he was simply cleaning/shining the ball for the bowler" Step 3 - Denial: It was everyone's fault but the players'. Players are innocent lambs led astray by others. Example - "It was Indian bookies fault as they offered our players money", or "Our bowlers were forced to tamper with the ball as the pitch was so lifeless", or "Asif never took drugs, his coach/doctor/ICC at fault since they should have monitored what Asif's hakeem was giving Asif" Step 4 - Conspiracy Theory: It's a conspiracy and the whole world is out to get us since they are jealous of us (another variation - they fear us)! Example - "BCCI/Indian Board along with Eng and Aussies wanted to ban our great world beating fast bowlers banned so that Pakistan cannot win the world cup", or "It's a conspiracy by the Indian Board to get our bowlers banned so that their batsmen can enhance their averages" Step 5 - Innocent till Guilty: By this time Pak fans have finally figured out that their players are indeed guilty based on the evidence presented and they come up with "Inncoent till proven guilty" card. Example - "So what there's a video tape evidence and the player actually bowled the no-ball, prove that in the court of law", or "So what Asif's urine sample contained steroids/banned performance enhancing drugs, this doesn't prove anything. Try to prove Asif's guilt in the court of law". pak fans generally confuse sporting rules/ethics with criminal offences and for them players are only guilty if they are found guilty for some criminal endeavor Step 6 - Everyone does it: By now enough evidence has been found that even OJ Simpson jury would find the player(s) guilty, and so Pak fans play their last card of "What's the big deal as everyone does it". Example - "So what Aamer & Asif accepted bribes/money for bowling no-balls, even Tendulkar was caught for cleaning the ball without asking the umpire once". This is akin to saying "So what this guy murdered 6 people in cold blood but even Abraham Lincoln lied once at the age of 5 and since both lying and murder are crimes, the murderer shouldn't be punished as well."

3.

There is still one more joke to be had, 5 Stages of grief: Pakistan fans Vs Rest of the world!! Rest of the world - 1.Denial: “Warne wouldn’t do that. He is a great player†2.Anger: “Why Azhar? He was the goddamn captain.†3.Bargaining : “ Gibbs didn’t really fix the match if he didn’t do what he said he would do†4.Depression: “This is a shame on the game I love. I don’t want to watch any more cricket†5.Acceptance: “Fk the cheaters. Now they are gone and not gonna play anymore. I won’t stop watching the game because of these cheaters†Pakistan fans - 1.Denial: “Amir is just 12 years old. He doesn’t know right from wrong. I am sure he didn’t do anything wrong†2.Anger: “WTF??Why did the players get caught? This is a huge shame on all Pakistanis†3.Bargaining: “Bowling no-balls doesn’t affect the match. What if Butt just gave him an order and Amir followed. What if Amis’s family was held hostage. What if Veena Malik said she would leave Asif alone if he bowled that no-ball†4.Projection: “We are innocent and this is a huge conspiracy by RAW and Mossad to defame Pakistan. Where is the time stamped, 1080p video with surround sound audio of Butt, Asif and Amir accepting the money to fix the match?? Why target us?? Look at IPL, it is fixed. Look at Miss Universe, it is fixed. Look at my loo, it is not fixed, it is still overflowing!!†5.Rejection: “Match fixing??What match fixing??What are you talking about? Hey guys, look at Amir, what a great bowler!!Dil Dil Pakistanâ€

4.

The 5 moral lessons Pak cricket teaches

1) Life always gives you a second chance Or third, or fourth. If you are caught, banned, stripped of captaincy, never ever give up. Those who presevere are re-instated. You might be behind bars today, but there will always be someone outside waiting to bail you out 2) Anyone can dream big and achieve it You might be the most mediocre player, might not even be in the selector's radar, might never have proven yourself among the big boys, but a week from now, you have a more than even chance of ending as the captain of the team! 3) Money is not everything There are other reasons to underperform, like to undermine a new captain, to protest against the taliban, to take a stand against stale potatoes during lunch breaks 4) The best defense is denial You are accused of killing someone in cold blood. The conversation goes like this Accuser : You murdered X Me : who is X. Never saw that guy, never met him, never heard about him. No proof he existed Accuser : But there were so many witnesses Me : What witnesses, i didint see any witnesses Accuser : But your wife and brother were among them Me : I dont have a wife and a brother Accuser : for God's sake... Me : There is no God. No proof 5) Life comes full circle, history repeats itself You are banned, re-instated, re-banned, made captain, dropped, you retire, you are re-hired. All this while not even crossing 20 yrs of age. you always wonder. Am I coming back from a ban or just starting my sentence? Thats life, the more things change, the more they remain the same

5.

The curious codes of the gentlemen's game I have heard people talkng about cricket being "the" gentlemen's game and how sporty behaviour is encouraged over win at all cost. there are some unwritten rules of conduct which , in case you go break, cause you to be labelled as unsporty. In fact, cricketers are among the biggest hypocrites on the earth. Here's why While 'sledging', its ok to call the opponent's mom, sister, wife or any other relative, the vilest of names, but it is totaly not cool to use one racist word against another player in retaliation Clearly the roots of this is in the difference between the European/Aus culture and the subcontinental culture. Abusing a relative, particularly a female one, is considered the ultimate of insults in the sub-continent and we are definitely as touchy about it as a colored person would be about racist abuse. That this fact and the provocation is ignored makes it hypocritical A fielder claiming a disputed catch is unsporty but a batsman not walking or acting most surprised when given out rightfully, is not an offence Somewhere along the line, the great tradional keepers of the game drew a fine line. A fielder putting on a show was considered as a bannable offense while a batsmen acting was considered a part of the game though both equally mislead an umpire into making a wrong descision. Also, in the former case, the batsmen can stand his ground causing the umpire to go for a third umpire while the hapless bowler doesnt have the same luxury if a batsman is reprieved A player is 'sporty' and 'honest' if he walks after nicking even though he claims the most dubious catches and LBWs while on the field This one is obvious. A batsmen once walked after nicking when the dismissal was not very obvious. The commentators, never having seen such an act of honesty (most likely having spent their childhood among the shady lanes of a Dickensesque neighbourhood), claimed it as the greatest sporting act ever. Thus was born the distinction between walkers and non-walkers. Even great players like Sachin were questioned over not-walking. The players thus branded honest, automatically become immune to being further questioned. The playacting and animated appeals while they are fielding are allconsidered a part of the game. Surely a truly honest player would walk AND not claim any dubious catches (and pay his car fines honestly)? at least non-walkers don't put up the pretense of being 'honest' A captain can be banned for being a bit behind in the overs but players are let off with fines when they deliberatley hurt the opposition players Running overtime is somehow considered to be a greater crimer than throwing a ball at a batsman. Clearly we are more concerned with not giving the sponsors an inch more of screen time and if a batsman cannot get out of the way of a well aimed missile, tough luck for him Green pitches are good, rank turners are not Spin has always been considered a poor cousin to pace. it requires as much skill to face a good spin bowler on a turning track as a good fast bolwer on a green pitch but you dont see stumps flying or batmen injured . You might see both teams getting out for below 100 on New Zealand pitches but God forbid if a pitch starts turning on a 4th and 5th day of a test. Captains always chose to bat second and have a higher win rate when they do, on a green pitch but its the sub-continent practise of batting first which is always questioned. A collorary to this is the batting averages of players on different pitches. Clearly on a good fast pitch, batting last is advantageous and so a batsman is likely to have a good 4th innings average when compared to a turner where the 4th innings average will dip Most of the unwritten code of honour is a vestige of a time gone by and is created by the likes and prejudices of the countries who created and dominated them. As time changes and the power centers shift, is it a wonder that we are having more power clashes and a change in codes of honour?

[DomainK]

I am torn between 3,4 and 5. :((

[Zap_Brannigan]

I am torn between 3' date='4 and 5. :(([/quote'] Try inky,pinky,ponky

[riwi999]

They are all good but I am torn between 1 and 2. I love the humour in 1 - just wish there had been more comments. 2 hits me - it is SO true!!! Last time I voted for the funniest piece (MTC's piece just clinched it over SJS's piece purely on this count), so this time I am going to go for a piece, very rich in truth. My vote goes to 2 (Ultimate Game).

[Roshanrocks]

there could be a division in votes between 4 and 5, MTC could garner most votes and still lose out, its better to club both posts under one entry

[EnterTheVoid]

I voted for No. 5

[Roshanrocks]

i vote for post No 5 - MTC

[vamos_rafa]

My vote goes for 5...

[gaurav92]

MTC Again

[nballa]

all about pak? people need some originality.

[kabira]

I gave vote to underdog, that is Ultimate_Game

[Zap_Brannigan]

Voting is Closed. My Two Cents "The curious codes of the gentlemen's game" is the winner of POTW#2. This is MTC's second consecutive POTW win. He wins another 10 million ICF $. Congrats!! Please Move on to POTW # 3 which will end on the 18th of Sep and not 17th as said in the title!!

[CSK Fan]

thank you guys!! How come the second star doesnt show in my profile?

[Roshanrocks]

thank you guys!! How come the second star doesnt show in my profile?

congerajulazons :two_thumbs_up:

[CSK Fan]

congerajulazons :two_thumbs_up:

:icflove:

[Zap_Brannigan]

thank you guys!! How come the second star doesnt show in my profile?

Wait till one of the mods notices this. I dont have that power.

[gaurav92]

MTC you rock man Congrats :congrats: