The True Tragedy Of Asif and Amir

In Christianity Jesus Christ was betrayed by Judas for 30 coins of silver…..

That’s what I automatically reverted back too. When the hammer came down on Pakistan’s Mohammad Asif and Mohammaf Amir for match spotting exiling them from the game.

For not to demean Religion in any manner, but these young men betrayed a quite literal Pakistani ‘God’ in cricket for the same monetary reward. Condemnation was swift and expected from such a proud Nation of people as Pakistan.

As best seen in this comment from an online forum:

‘Amir/Asif didn’t only steal, they betrayed a whole country. They bought great sadness to millions of people, and pretty much committed treason. They also tarnished our great sport.’

So then the dust settled on the tragic event and the sad reality was accepted. The wounds of betrayal were still very tender with many calls for these men never to be allowed to represent Pakistan againJustified too……..For they were living the dream of every Pakistani. In representing the Nation in cricket and they chose to not only disrespect the honour, but to take it one step further and tarnish it indelibly and hold it up to tauntsThe cuts were deep and the pain that accompanied them, but as you dug a bit deeper they take on a different incarnate as if salt has been applied. The clarity shows the existence of a double edged sword. For you can’t begin to explain the meaning of their betrayal for it has no words, but then their loss to the game was vast too , Restoring balance in the game in the present and in the future was what they could have achieved…..

A huge call indeed, but just think for a moment about who you define as A grade performers in the current ageId hazard to guess these names would be offered:

Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Kumar Sangakkara, Jonathan Trott, Hashim Amla, Virender Sehwag, Jacques Kallis and Dale SteynGreat names…,but symbolically of the current age 7 out of 8 are batsmen with Steyn the sole bowler.Thus making this the batting age and it’s effect is not only seen in the now with often one sided contests with bat dominating over ball. Though also in the future with what this spectacle inspires.

This seen by the fact that tomorrow’s star are born out of the inspiration of today’s heroes.These two Pakistani pace men would have changed this indelibly for you couldn’t help but be inspired by their regal skill and be besotted by their bowling beauty. Then in the now their effect on any batting line up was reminiscent of a hot knife slicing through butter. So rather than seeing batsmen fill their boots against average bowlers. We instead were to bare witness to a true spectacle. Either of these genius bowlers dismembering batsmen or indeed the edge of your seat spectacle that a great batsmen versus great bowlers represents.Just think back to what was Test Crickets finest highlight of recent times and it be hard to go past the epic battle between Sachin Tendulkar and Dale Steyn.Yum Yum….mouth watering wasn’t it……………!

That’s what these two represented for not just Pakistani’s, but for all cricket fans

So allow us to dream a bit….Say a India versus Pakistan Test at a packed Eden Gardens with Sachin and VVS in partnership as these two roar into to them from either end.

You wouldn’t be lying to say half of the World’s humanity would stand still to bare witness. To truly immerse in the theatre and be moved by the inspiration.

In the face of this kids would run out mimicking Asif and Amir having a profound effect of crickets future…Then reality bites you and you wake in fright….

To realise that this could have been their destiny, but they forsook it all for a few coins of gold…

A tragedy of the sincerest sense for all lovers of cricket that we will bemoan for many moons