-----Original Message-----
From: world_cricket@yahoogroups.com [mailto:world_cricket@yahoogroups.com]On Behalf Of Oldfathertime
Sent: 26 April 2008 21:23
To: world_cricket@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [world_cricket] Speed gone fishing

Hi Ho All,

I couldn't agree more Riff. Surely, of the hundreds, if not thousands,
available, some must have a bit of savvy of world affairs, business matters,
communication and people skills, but ultimately the game itself at heart.

Then again players can lie through their teeth for their own self interests
with the best of them ... for how many years have they been bleeting about
workload but happily bugger off to this 20/20 tournamnet at the drop of a
hat? And they want to otrganise another one in England and some even want to
be part of the ICL.

Riff, how did the people and press of England take to the idea of merging
Counties to cater for the proposed English 20/20 PL?

Cheers
Christopher

> About bloody time!
>
> The sooner we get rid of the corruption at the top we can do something
> about
> restoring the game. But the ICC is full of people too busy feathering
> their
> own nests to actually get on and run the game professionally. It's jobs
> for
> the boys. Where are the cricketers at the top level?
>
>

>
> Hi Ho All,
>
> Considering the state of the game, the ICC, world cricket, rule changes,
> the
> influence of the media and national boards ... is it little wonder that
> we
> may look back at 2008 as the beginning of the end.
>
> Currently discussing cricket with a newcomer to the game (brought in by
> the
> current 20/20 thingy in India) it would seem most of my enjoyment in the
> years ahead will come from old footage and books.
>
> Feel free to read the article below, followed by folks comments, taken
> from
> Cricinfo for those who are interested.
>
> Cheers
> Christopher
>
> International Cricket Council
>
> ICC factionalism runs out of control
>
> Andrew Miller
>
> April 25, 2008
>
> On the one hand, the early end of Malcolm Speed's tenure as ICC chief
> executive changes little within a blighted organisation. It had already
> been
> announced that he was to stand down in July, after seven turbulent years
> at
> the helm, and so all that has really changed is that he will now take no
> part in the ICC's annual conference, which - as Cricinfo yesterday
> revealed - will take place in Dubai instead of Lord's for the first time
> in
> the organisation's 99-year history.
>
> In the grander scheme of things, however, Speed's ousting is more than
> just
> a final humiliation for a man who has found himself at the sharp end of
> every one of the game's myriad crises of the recent past. It is an open
> admission of the hypocrisy, factionalism and naked politicking that has
> paralysed the game's governing body, at precisely the moment when the
> global
> game is most desperately in need of leadership and unity.
>
> This is a perilous period for world cricket, for the pace of change this
> year has been rampant. The Twenty20 format has exploded into life with a
> force that few could ever have contemplated, and cricket's elite players
> are
> being transfixed by the life-transforming sums of money being dangled in
> front of their faces. There is, in the opinion of one of the men of the
> moment, Allen Stanford, a "900lb gorilla" running amok in the East, and
> yet
> his response - to whack £10 million on the table and declare "take it or
> leave it" - seems no less ape-ish.
>
> A strong sporting body - or even a weak sporting body that actually cared
> for the game that it governed - would find sufficient voice and authority
> to
> declare that enough is enough. But the ICC is nothing more than a
> burnt-out
> train-wreck of an organisation. For years it was run as a personal
> fiefdom
> of England and Australia; now it's India's turn, as the game's financial
> powerhouse, to ride rough-shod over all comers; rarely more triumphantly
> than during the recent Harbhajan Singh furore in Australia. Meanwhile,
> the
> rest of the world clung meekly to the concept that unity, however
> unilateral, was better than the anarchy that now threatens to engulf the
> game.
>
> Now, however, any board that values its integrity would do well to give
> the
> ICC as little credence as possible. The fact that it is Zimbabwe that has
> spread the rot so far and wide is no surprise, but it still beggars
> belief
> how they are permitted to get away with it. Zimbabwe's domestic structure
> is
> in chaos, they are incapable of raising a Test side and they are barely
> competitive at any level of the game. And yet Peter Chingoka, their
> stooge
> of a chairman, is arguably the most influential man in the game today,
> all
> because he is willing to accede slavishly to the BCCI on any and every
> issue.
>
> Thanks principally to Chingoka, a wedge has been driven between (without
> putting too fine a point of it) the white countries and the rest, but the
> man who has allowed this to get out of control in recent months is Ray
> Mali,
> whom Peter Roebuck last week described as "a compromised and unworthy
> president of the ICC". He is another official who is drunk on his own
> power,
> which is incredible seeing as he shouldn't even be in the job in the
> first
> place. He was only handed the reins as a stop-gap measure, following the
> death of Percy Sonn in May 2007.
>
> According to those who have watched him in action in the ICC, Mali is as
> reckless as he is power-happy, so prone to gaffes that he is rarely
> trusted
> to speak publicly. Last October, at the Darrell Hair tribunal in London,
> he
> stunned his employers - and effectively sealed the case in favour of the
> defendant - when he declared: "I don't see any reason why Mr Hair should
> not
> return to the Elite panel and umpire Test matches." Robert Griffiths,
> Hair's
> QC, was obliged to repeat the words to make sure Mali was aware of what
> he
> was saying.
>
> Today, Mali wasn't even trusted to comment on the schemozzle emanating
> from
> Dubai. He was in South Africa and unavailable "for personal reasons",
> leaving his successor, David Morgan, to issue the press release that
> heralded Speed's departure, as well as face the media at Lord's on
> Saturday
> afternoon. Such was the complete confusion that he left behind, some of
> the
> executive board didn't even know of the decision until it had been
> announced.
>
> Rarely has the ICC moved with such haste - on the Zimbabwe issue they
> have
> been dragging their feet for five years. However, the factions within the
> ICC corridors of power have been gunning for Speed ever since that
> fateful
> meeting in March, when the independent forensic audit into Zimbabwe's
> financial irregularities was swept under the carpet. Speed refused to
> front
> up to defend a decision with which he fundamentally disagreed, and from
> that
> moment on, his fate was sealed.
>
> Tellingly, Mali and his cronies were desperate that Zimbabwe should not
> been
> seen as the cause of Speed's downfall, Cricinfo has learnt. Earlier this
> week, they saw an opportunity to strike when it emerged that the rebel
> Indian Cricket League had written to the ICC to seek official status. By
> dressing that up as an illicit approach to the CEO, they hoped to
> discredit
> him. However, in a further indication that there are factions within the
> ICC's factions, this morning's press release explicitly mentioned
> Zimbabwe
> as the core issue. It seems there will be yet more power struggles to
> come.
>
> Speed will not be missed by those who equate his seven-year reign with
> the
> erosion of the ICC's credibility, but his Teflon-like abilities most
> certainly will be missed. His stance throughout a dreadful last 18
> months -
> from Hair-gate to the World Cup and beyond - was an implacable calm that,
> superficially at least, gave the impression that there was a modicum of
> control being exercised at some level of the organisation.
>
> Now, the ICC is officially out of control - and with it the world game.
> In
> a
> poll carried out today by the Professional Cricketers' Association, a
> fifth
> of England's county cricketers admitted they would be prepared to sign up
> for the reviled ICL. Meanwhile the best players in the world are
> preparing
> to grab whatever cash comes their way in their all-too-brief careers, and
> hang the consequences. The concept of loyalty in professional sport has
> long
> been an anachronism, but the way they are behaving, you'd assume the ICC
> couldn't care less for the consequences of their actions.
>
> Andrew Miller is UK editor of Cricinfo
>
> © Cricinfo
>
> Have Your Say Read Comments (14)
>
> Comments
> Top ^
>
> Is this really the state of affairs in cricketing journalism
> today? Ifan editor with a great deal more knowledge of world cricket than
> the majority of people who post on this website, makes a criticism of the
> BCCI or indeed of the ICC, that he is immiediately declared both a white
> racist, and an old world imperialist?
> Posted by cage08 on April 25 2008, 23:04 PM GMT
>
> We all live in an economically driven world, and anyone who
> understands even the most basic principles of economy would not fail to
> realize that power is distributed based on the strength of each of the
> members running the economy. The tables have turned and India is
> undoubtedly
> the new power in world cricket. As a person who follows cricket very
> passionately, I realize that the IPL is no harm to the game, and as a
> matter
> of fact, it is an ideal tool to globalize the game. The BCCI have to be
> complemented for their vison on the development of the game. ICC tried so
> hard to globalize the game and there were more failures than successes.
> India have shown that they have the right kind of administration to take
> the
> game forward so there is no reason why they should not occupy the highest
> positions in the hierachy.
> Posted by sp000 on April 25 2008, 22:48 PM GMT
>
> Great article. My issue with the current developments within
> cricket are concerning the lower levels of the game. I think that test
> cricket, in the last 10 yrs has proved itself as an economically viable
> product in certain countrys prior to the icl/ipl revolution (certainly in
> England and Aus, other countrys may have struggled for big crowds but
> that
> has been the case for years!). However, with the inception of the two
> indian
> cricket leagues, I think the real losers are the domestic competitions of
> the test playing nations, and the countrys at associate level.
> Posted by zwartedepiet on April 25 2008, 22:06 PM GMT
>
> It is ironic that while I have disagreed with most of Mal
> Speed's actions during his tenure, the issue he has apparently been
> removed
> over is the one issue (Zimbabwe) on which he has clearly done the right
> thing, while the Board has not. Perhaps the mark of a good decision on
> any
> issue is the opposite of whatever the Board of the ICC decides.
> Posted by Craig.B on April 25 2008, 22:03 PM GMT
>
> Unfortunately some English and Australian journalists do not
> assess objectively on certain facts. Zimbabwe Zimbabwe is the pet
> whipping
> boy for Britain. Zimbabwe was neither the first dictatorship nor will it
> be
> the last. It is a poor country compared to China which is trampling upon
> Tibet or apartheid era South Africa, with which England had no moral
> compunctions in playig cricket. Pakistan which is the hotbed of terror
> accross the world or Sri Lanka which deals with Tamils in a less than
> fair
> manner. Zimbabwe, its people and its cricket needs to be embraced by
> England
> and ICC, inspite of allegations of corruption. This was Nixon's approach
> to
> China and Regan's approach to East Bloc. Why not the same approach to
> Zimbabwe. Harbajan/Hyden Episode Why is it referred to as Harbajan
> episode
> when a white New Zealand judge of impeccable credentials has exonerated
> Harbajan, but in fact questioned the integrity of Hayden and Clarke.
> Please
> be a objective journalist
> Posted by Not-White-Nor-Brown on April 25 2008, 22:02 PM GMT
>
> Well said...it's good to have someone say it like it is. I may
> be Asian but i certainly don't like the way the game is being run at the
> moment. There is a certain amount of 'payback' in all this with the Asian
> bloc feeling it's high time they got their dues after England and
> Australia
> had their way for so long. They need to get over it as the world is a
> different place these days. It doesn't help having sycophants like
> Chingoka
> around. It's amazing how some people are happy to gloss over glaring
> injustices & misdemeanours for political ends. South African presidents,
> be
> they from the ICC or heads of state, just don't want to see what's really
> going on in Zimbabwe. And any chance the Asian bloc have to stick it to
> the
> white countries, they will. The IPL is just making them punch-drunk and
> power-happy. I may not have always been Speed's biggest fan, but at least
> he's stood up for a principle. Well done to him. I'm not necessarily a
> traditionalist but i do fear for the future of the game
> Posted by Haque-the-Herald on April 25 2008, 21:54 PM GMT
>
> Re: International Cricket Council ICC factionalism runs out of
> control Andrew Miller April 25, 2008 UNQUOTE: Mr. Miller is typical of
> the
> white only establishment, I won't go so far as to say racist
> establishment,
> that cannot swallow the fact non whites now rule the roost at the ICC.
> Get
> used to it, there are billions of us Indians, Pakistanis, and
> Bangladeshis,
> not to mention West Indians, and South Africans, and yes Kenyans to make
> life very very miserable for the "whites only" groups who want to run the
> ICC like Mr. Smith ran Rhodesia. Take Gavaskar, had he been been white
> and
> had he been an MCC member (remember when you could not sneeze on a
> cricket
> grouns without the MCC deeming it "not cricket") people would have been
> lining up to kiss his feet, today he's lambasted for playing two roles
> which
> appear contradictory - even though he called a spade, a spade. Amen to
> the
> departure of Speed, now if they get rid of Hair we'll all be happy.
> Posted by cric8111 on April 25 2008, 21:30 PM GMT
>
> ICC is a disgrace now. It should be governed by people who have
> a sense of justice, with morals and those who support the game - not
> countries or cricket boards. What is happening is a disgrace. I hope and
> pray that cricket comes out as a winner at the end of these powergames in
> the cricketing world.
> Posted by DrTKhan on April 25 2008, 20:25 PM GMT
>
> This is an unmitigated disgrace! In his attitude in finally
> deciding to discipline Zimbabwe, Speed is 1000% correct! This should hsve
> happened long ago. Chingoka and his crew are avid Mugabe supporters and
> are
> just there to implement Mugabes wishes, while filling their pockets with
> ICC
> cash intended for the clubs. It is even more disgusting that India is
> behind
> all of these criminal actions! India offers a shield to Zimbabwe in
> exchange
> for its unswerving fealty on all issues! The BCCI is becoming a hotbed of
> illegal behaviour. I think its time now to break up this farce of an ICC!
> England, Australia and NZ must take a stand. Either Zim is expelled or
> they
> go! Its quite possible that they can take the Windies with them. There is
> no
> great love lost between Windies and India. The rest, mainly 4 S Asia
> counties can get on with their own cricket. Sadly, SA, under its present
> rulers, will follow India down the criminal road. Whatever else happens,
> its
> time law and dignity was restored.
> Posted by JackJ on April 25 2008, 20:09 PM GMT
>
> It's all very upsetting, but I think Malcolm Speed being the CEO
> for 7 years, had not done enough. While Ray Mali's is an interesting
> point
> as to why he remains the president despite presenting such glaring lack
> of
> abilities at the post. I think the Indian stronghold in ICC is not the
> problem, rather the problem is BCCI. They have become blinded by the
> amount
> of money they've been bringing in. Up until IPL juggernaut had been kick
> started, BCCI hardly spent enough, and now all of a sudden they are
> dishing
> out money like candy. It's obvious, they want more greens. If rest of the
> world wanted, they could boycott BCCI, but it appears as Andrew says, the
> gray divide is not letting it happen. The whole world seems blinded by
> the
> skin complexion so, I am not surprised at this.
> Posted by r1m2 on April 25 2008, 19:59 PM GMT