Dhoni opens up on IPL fixing scandal: What did players do to go through all of that?

‘What mistake did the players make?’ asked Mahendra Singh Dhoni, opening up on a phase of life made “most difficult and depressing” by the 2013 IPL fixing scandal.

The two-time World Cupwinning captain broke his silence in a docudrama aptly titled ‘Roar of theLion’, which focuses on the scandal that rocked Indian cricket and the ensuingfairy tale comeback by Chennai Super Kings following a two-year suspension forits management’s role in spot-fixing.

   

“2013 was the mostdifficult phase in my life, I was never depressed as much as I was then. Theclosest was 2007 World Cup when we lost in the group stages. But all said anddone, 2007 happened because we did not play good cricket.

“But 2013, the anglewas completely different. People are talking about match-fixing andspot-fixing. It was the most talked about thing in the country,” Dhonisaid in the first episode titled ‘What did we do wrong’? broadcast on Hotstar.

Dhoni, who led CSK to threeIPL titles, said they knew a “harsh punishment” was on the cards.

“Wedid deserve the punishment but the only thing is the quantum of the punishment.Finally we got to know that CSK will be banned for two years. There was a mixedfeeling that time. Because you take a lot of things personally and, as acaptain, question what did the team do wrong,” Dhoni stated.

“Yes there was mistakefrom our side (the franchise) but were the players involved in this? Whatmistake did we, as players, do to go through all of that?”

Recalling the torrid timewhen insinuations and allegations flew thick and fast, Dhoni said fixing amatch requires the involvement of the majority of players.

“My name also came upin talks of fixing. They started showcasing in the media or social media as ifthe team was involved, I was involved. Is it possible (in cricket)? Yes it ispossible, anyone can do spot-fixing. Umpires can do that, batsmen can, bowlerscan… but match-fixing needs the involvement of the majority of theplayers.”

For Dhoni, who has alwayspreferred to go about his job quietly even when leading the Indian team, hissilence may have been misunderstood.

“The problem whenpeople think you are very strong, is that more often than not, nobody comes andasks: how are you doing. It was more of how I dealt with it.

“I did not want totalk about it to others, at the same time it was scratching me. I don’t wantanything to affect my cricket. For me cricket is the most importantthing.”

In a trailer of thedocumentary recently, Dhoni had called match-fixing a bigger crime than murder.”Whatever I am today, whatever I have achieved is because of cricket. Sothe biggest crime that I can commit personally is not murder. It’s actuallymatch fixing because it doesn’t get restricted to me. If I’m involved in such athing, it has a bigger impact.

“If people think amatch is fixed because the outcome of a match is extraordinary, then peoplelose their faith in cricket. I don’t think in my life I would deal withsomething that is tougher than this,” he said.

Dhoni had not commented onthe turmoil before this. In July 2015, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royalswere suspended from the cash-rich league for two years for betting activitiesby their key officials Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra during the 2013season.

On his silence post theepisode, Dhoni said, “What makes it even tougher is that, as the Indiancaptain you keep going to press conferences. There is a known line that isdrawn that that was the IPL and this is the Indian cricket team.

“It’s not easy to keepperforming at the top level when these things are on your mind. Ten years downthe line, no one is going to remember what was said in a press conference buthow the team did.”

While he agreed that thenBCCI chief N Srinivasan’s son-in-law Meiyappan was part of the team setup,Dhoni said, in what capacity, is open to debate.

“Initially, whenGuru’s name came up, (we knew) he was part of the team, all said and done. Butin what capacity, that is debatable. Was he the owner, the team principal, themotivator… what exactly was he?

“I don’t know if anyone from the franchise introduced Guru to us as the owner… we all knew him as the son-in-law.”

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