Bikram Vohra

By : Bikram Vohra

Did you ever mistrust tennis? Let it cross your mind that it could be as finely choreographed as a West End theatrical performance? That these past 10 years as many as 16 famous players were possibly involved in gamesmanship of the most sordid order? On a regular basis. So much for the nail biting, edge of the seat excitement of the five setters as we, the fans, egged on our icons.

And it is as fans that these revelations make us resentful. At the very outset take the timing. The scandal breaks on the shores of the Australian Open. Clearly, for maximum tract but it knocks the pleasure for a loop. Then the squeaky clean Djokovic muddies the waters further by blithely announcing that he was asked to drop a match ten years ago. Why was he silent for a decade, where was the virtue in that? What was he into…omerta? We are not talking about some league player, we are quoting today’s World No 1 and when he says something as stunning as this then that confession stands up as an indictment of the whole rotten mess. It has clearly been going on for a long time and adds credibility to the allegations made by Buzzfeed and the BBC.

Then there is the tacky titillation in the accusations. Sixteen players from the top fifty, some of them Grand Slam title holders. But we won’t tell you who? Hint hint. If you know that and you know how many so specifically you know who they are. But no, we have to play little mind games and damn characters by innuendo. Little clues will now start to snow flake upon us. He once won two titles in a year. Is tall! Is short! Has a temper! The first leak: Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis stating he was offered money to lose a match on Facebook. Half the players in the ugly business are playing in the Oz open. Great, just what we need. You are warm, warmer, hot, hot, hot.

Stand by for next bulletin.

Sport and Scandal. Like Mork and Mindy. They make a perfect pair. And we are getting tired of the bludgeoning of our sensibilities. Remember how we have always been told that the Sports pages are the one which celebrate the triumph of Man. I seriously wonder about that now. We have just recently seen athletics rocked at its very foundations but at least those athletes and the world of cycling were trying to improve performance by using banned substances if that can be seen as a redeeming feature. The FIFA fall from grace was more administrative than on the field of play. Cricket has been mauled by every negative element possible but since it is now largely marketed as a circus the cheating has become integral to the pattern and does not raise eyebrows.

But tennis had a certain regal standing. All that ‘quiet please’ stuff and no one allowed to enter when play was on and that certain hush hush reverence spiking the atmosphere as our racquet wielding gladiators did battle (reckon women are exempt from the accusations) and all we were watching were actors on a stage.

More fool us.

It is early days yet and no one can second guess how things will all pan out. Everyone involved is very cagey about the allegations but you don’t get the BBC to go public without having done its homework. The dam is leaking definitely and might collapse as more specific details are released. For now, having watched the first coating of tarnish can one watch a ‘tense’ match without thinking, ‘uh oh, is this all fake?’

When you consider the fact that the Aussie Open is being sponsored by a gambling organization and the police have the stadium courts under surveillance there is that disquieting sensation that you, the fan, has been fouled for good. Game, set and match to the bad guys.

Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in the Column section are their own and do not reflect RiyadhVision’s point-of-view.

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