Whistle-blowing must become an absolute duty for all, says Brearley

MUMBAI: Mike Brearley is known to the world more as a former England opening batsman and a legendary former captain, who acted as a catalyst for Ian Botham to deliver surreal performances in the 1981 Ashes series.
But what many don't know is the fact that he is a qualified psycho-analyst, psycho-therapist and also a motivational speaker. His book, 'The Art Of Captaincy', is a must-read for any leader from any walk of life and offers wonderful insights into human behaviour.
Former Aussie quick Rodney Hogg, not known for philanthropy when it comes to complimenting others, paid the ultimate tribute to Brearley's man-management skills and once famously said, "Brearley has a degree in people."
It is perhaps this ability to understand people that prompted Brearley to say that disgraced Pakistan teen pace sensation, Mohammad Aamer, deserves a little more leniency than the other accused in the 2010 spot-fixing scandal which also involved banned Pakistan captain Salman Butt and pacer Mohammed Asif.
Addressing the Raj Singh Dungarpur Voice Of Cricket Lecture at the World Cricket Summit in Mumbai on Monday night, Brearley pleaded with current players not to succumb to the sin of fixing, no matter what the temptation.
Stressing that cheating had become cricket's most important issue, he reckoned that the players and the powers that be should speak out vehemently against it. "Whistle-blowing must become an absolute duty for everyone in the game," he felt.
Brearley acknowledged that pressure put on young impressionable minds of cricketers like Aamer by senior players in the team or illegal bookies and players-agents with a criminal bent of mind, is what leads to those cricketers taking a bite of the forbidden fruit which leads to the ultimate 'fall'.
Aamer, who pleaded guilty to his involvement and is currently serving prison term in the UK, like his disgraced teammates Butt and Asif, found a vehement supporter in Brearley, who acknowledged that the pressure put on young minds by corrupt and influential teammates and agents is 'appalling'.
"As a result, some of those involved (read Aamer) might need to be treated with compassion, especially if they admit their guilt and are willing to be enlisted in the battle against corruption. Retributive justice, tempered with mercy, is vital in sentencing and punishing," he said.
Quoting generously from British novelist Ian McEwan's 2010 satire, 'Solar', Brearley said cricketers who fall prey to the fixing bug are like the novel's protagonist, Michael Beard, a jaded Nobel-winning physicist, whose cynical ambition sees him pursuing an unreal solution for a solar energy-based climate change.
Fearing that corruption might still be rampant in the game, the 69-year-old added: "I don't think the whole truth has been told yet, or can be told. Aamer, was subject to pressure and was, I believe, uninterested in any financial gain. He should have been, treated much more leniently."