An individual, regardless of the sport he plays and the country he represents, at a given stage in his career reaches a point when he no longer belongs to himself. He bears the flag or logo of the nation he represents on his chest, which becomes the single most important reason he pursues the sport at the highest level. What he does on the field affects millions of people and to so many, it either makes or breaks their day. Once he has attained a level of accomplishment, what he does off the field reflects on his level of substance because he is in the public eye and is constantly being evaluated in the court of public opinion. You need character and substance to manage this.
In recent times, the public has been exposed to some unfortunate developments involving some of our cricket players and the Cricket Board, particularly incidents pertaining to several breaches of discipline by Shakib al Hasan, regarded to be the only player of some caliber. Apparently, Shakib has been repeatedly violating the player’s code of conduct as set by the BCB for the past few years. My intention is not to look at Shakib’s actions through a microscope and pass judgment. I am sure there are many arm-chair Generals that are perfectly suited for this job. On the contrary, one should ask the simple question as to why Shakib or for that matter a few other leading players, are able to repeatedly violate this code so brashly only when they are in Bangladesh. Are they able to exhibit similar behavior when they are playing abroad? What is it that prevails in our cricketing environment that encourages these players to bring out their worst behavior that is not only crude, but vile and obnoxious? To understand this, one needs to look much deeper into our cricketing system.
Since Bangladesh was granted Test Match status, the administration of the game has been similar to Bangladesh’s domestic club cricket that consisted of cliques, and political maneuvering. Nothing has changed since other than a major culture change in the 1980’s when the game gradually but surely shifted from the educated middle class to the half-educated or near illiterate class. By education, I mean both in terms of having a literal academic accomplishment as well as having some education about the game itself covering both its history and tradition. Sadly, one or both have been lacking greatly at our administrative and player levels.
Almost all of Bangladesh’s cricket players current and those of the recent past, come from humble backgrounds. They are young, over enthusiastic, lack substance and way too wealthy for their age. If anyone needs proper education, it is these individuals. The BCB has failed to do this from the very beginning and on top of this; the media has turned them into superstars by highlighting their trade to a level that is based upon a false sense of accomplishment. I always felt that the rating system of players and teams is flawed and misleading. Points should be based upon the opposition you play against and where you play. For example, if you play teams like Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and other Associate members that have ODI status, then the points should be lower than what one would get playing against the big boys. Similarly, home matches should carry fewer points than away matches. Had this point system plan been implemented then Shakib’s head would be in the right place today.
The single most significant reason why several of our cricket players exhibit such obnoxious mannerism in Bangladesh is because they have no respect for the people who run it. Deep down they truly believe that the game is being controlled by individuals whose only qualification is that they are under the blessing of the ruling Party (regardless of the Party). Added to this reality is their awareness of the corruption that exists in our system. It is not that Shakib or Tamim thinks that they are above the law. Because they have been exposed to the International arena, they feel that playing for Bangladesh is secondary as lucrative financial benefits lie outside the shores of Bangladesh and they equate the nation with the people that control them, i.e., the BCB. All of these players need to understand that the benefits came their way because the nation has provided them with the opportunity to play the sport and that others have sacrificed much to create this environment for them.
Shakib and the likes of him need to understand that the game can be very cruel. It is all about respect. Respecting the game means respecting everything that come with it; the crowd, the opposition, the umpires, the ones that played before them etc. The game is greater than any individual. All of them need to go to the beach and watch the waves roll in and realize that the waves roll in but they do end up crashing on the beach. The trick is to be able to ride the wave and avoid the crash landing.
