Two weeks ago, I commented upon the libel battle wherein one of New Zealand's greatest players, Chris Cairns, was suing ex-IPL chairman Lalit Modi for a defamatory 'tweet', accusing the former all-rounder of match-fixing when involved in the ICL. . Today, the London High Court found in Cairns' favour.
It had been a brave move by Cairns. These cases don't come cheap. However, he clearly knew he was innocent of such claims, despite the string of former Chandighar team-mates lined up by Modi to give evidence against him. Judge David Bean rubbished the players' evidence, and also that of the former ICL anti-corruption officer, Howard Beer, whom he described as "partisan to the point of being unprofessional". So much for being anti-corruption! There's probably a lot more to reveal about what happened in the ICL, but that's for future court cases or media revelations!
While Cairns can happily hold his head up high, Modi should be ashamed to show his face in public ever again. To accuse a player of match-fixing without anything to back it up is tantamount to ruining a player's reputation. Being awarded £90,000 damages and £1.5 million costs, while welcome financially, counts as nothing compared with the damage done by aspersions cast upon his integrity. A player's considerable achievements can become invisible in the fog of corruption claims or, as Cairns said, reducing them "to dust". I don't know the ins and outs of what Modi did at the IPL but there are too many zillionaire businessmen tainting cricket with dodgy dealings. Fortunately crime doesn't always pay in the long run; ask the odious Allan Stanford, convicted of stealing a mere $8 billion! Thank goodness the ECB and others washed their hands of him before his T20 vanity project became too big, and its sponsor's association too embarrassing.
I do feel reassured that Chris Cairns has been vindicated but it is disturbing that other players can be persuaded to offer what the judge called inconsistent and unreliable evidence. There is clearly a lot more yet to emerge from those murky days in the ICL but that's for another day in court or media publication! I hope this action, like the Salman Butt affair, has demonstrated that bullies shouldn't prosper, just as I fervently wish that all genuine cheats get caught and banned for life.
