the wrong 'un

Friday, March 23, 2007

Robert Andrew Woolmer (May 14, 1948 – March 18, 2007)

The blog stumbles out of its self-inflicted coma to ask the only pertinent question.


WTF? Seriously, WTF?

When the news broke about the death of Bob Woolmer, it didn't take long for the conspiracy theories to develop, led as ever by the indefatigable rent-a-quote Pakistani former bowler Sarfraz Nawaz. As days went by, the details became ever more suspicious, culminating in yesterday's bombshell.

Pakistani cricket is a microcosm of Pakistani society, riven by cronyism and tribalism, and constantly shifting factions and alliances that are difficult for outsiders to comprehend. Assuming that Woolmer's murder resulted from his employment as Pakistan's coach (and that is still a big if), it might take months or years to unravel the conspiracy even if the perpetrators are unmasked. Therefore I believe it is the correct decision to continue with the tournament, particularly as Pakistan will take no further part.

But it is patently obvious that there are still a large number of 'known unknowns', and should some unsavoury facts about sub-continental bookmaking influence surface shortly, or speculation linking this crime with the strange death of Hansie Cronje, or worst of all, the arrest of one or more persons from within the cricketing fraternity, all bets about the future of this World Cup are off.

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