Is Mohammad Aamer’s re-admission fair to cricketers who follow spirit of the game?

Mohammad Aamer may have been unaware of the previous fixing scandals that had rocked the cricketing world, but that doesn't mean he wasn't mature enough to understand the morality of the game.

Ever since Mohammad Aamer rose from the shadows of spot-fixing, there has been an everlasting debate whether his re-admission is fair to the players who are loyal to the game. Pakistan‘s ODI captain Azhar Ali and opener Mohammad Hafeez had protested the inclusion of Aamer, and at one point, they even decided to opt out if Aamer was to share the dressing room with them. It has been over six months now and this topic is still being discussed, and the latest entrant to share his thoughts is England’s former off-spinner Graeme Swann, who was also a part of the infamous match at Lord’s that witnessed the fixing scandal. Read: Pakistan vs England 2016: Looking beyond Alastair Cook, Mohammad Aamer

“This is a man who crushed the morality of the game. And yet he is being allowed back to play at the Home of Cricket,” wrote Swann in his column for The Sun. The column displays no sympathy for the Pakistani pacer. Swann’s choice of words and the tonality suggests how Aamer “sickens him” and that he “should have been banned for life.”

He sounds fair and square. There’s nothing wrong with it. Aamer’s action not only disgraced Pakistan cricket but also left the gentleman’s game in turmoil. Scripting a defeat of your own team is indeed unacceptable, but to play against the spirit of the game is an unforgivable act.

“He is an incredibly talented bowler — he took 6-84 in that infamous Lord’s Test six years ago — but that does not excuse what he did. No matter how good you are, if you sell your soul for 30 pieces of silver, you have to pay the consequences. And I don’t think he has,” added Swann.

If you look at the other side of the matter, Aamer also served a prison term and five-year ban for his wrongdoings. He accepted his involvement in the scandal, provided as much information as he could for investigations to proceed further and did as asked by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Read: Matthew Maynard witnesses glimpses of Andy Roberts in Mohammad Aamer

However, India’s Test captain Virat Kohli sees the bright side of it. “He is a very skillful bowler and I wish him all the best. He worked hard to come this far and it takes a lot of courage. I am quite happy seeing that he realised his fault and rectified it,” Kohli said during Asia Cup T20 2016.

At this point, we have seen both sides of the coin and one cannot but agree with both.

Aamer was only a 17-year-old juvenile when he committed the crime. His captain Salman Butt, who started the ruckus, asked him to underperform in order to make up for the bribes he had taken from a bookmaker.

At that point of time, Aamer had just emerged at the international level. He may have been unaware of the previous fixing scandals that had rocked the cricketing world, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t mature enough to understand the morality of the game.

There have been many players who played international cricket, but still managed to escape from the fixing maze. They must have gotten greedy, but eventually and wisely refused to fall into the trap, and maintained their integrity and dignity. Aamer, on the other hand, got carried away and had to pay the price.

However, as a cricket fan, anyone would like to see him in action. He has raw pace and fierce swing. He is relentless and madly passionate about the game. In the few matches he donned Pakistan’s jersey, his contributions were superior to his contemporaries. READ: Mohammad Aamer in spotlight as he returns where he threw it away

To be honest, everyone deserves a second chance (unless it is unforgivable). He diligently worked hard to earn a recall. And, when he did, he eclipsed his past crime and made headlines for his spectacular performances.

Nonetheless, the question still remains: is Mohammad Aamer’s re-admission fair to cricketers who follow spirit of the game?

(Kaustubh S. Mayekar, a reporter at CricketCountry, played cricket at U-16 level. Like his idol Rahul Dravid, he often shadow-practises cricket shots. His Twitter handle is @kaumedy_)

About the Author