Mail Today, New Delhi / Chandigarh, Saturday, May 24, 2014 Mail Today, New Delhi, Saturday, May 24, 2014 Sports Mail Bopanna-Qureshi enter doubles final in Nice WE ALL called him Nana Mama, that is, in the family and strictly off the field. On the field he was feared, like a headmaster, because he always played by the book. Madhav Krishnaji Mantri, India’s oldest Test cricketer, who ‘hung up’ his boots on May 23, 2014, was one of the big pillars of Bombay (Mumbai) cricket. He had a huge impact on doyens such as Polly Umrigar, Subhash Gupte, Naren Tamhane and his nephew Sunil Gavaskar. When a school-going Sunil tried on his maternal uncle’s India cap, he was told in certain terms that he would have to ‘earn’ the cap. Another story involving Gavaskar and his uncle is interesting. Sunil, after scor- ing a double hundred for Bombay Univer- sity, met his uncle who admonished him for having thrown his wicket and not being unbeaten at the end of the day. Mantri once dropped an India player, who turned up late for the match, while captain- ing the famed Mumbai club Dadar Union, on disciplinary grounds. The club, which Mantri ran like a tight ship, produced many India cricketers like Tamhane, Gupte, Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Sanjay Manjrekar. Even after his retirement from the first- class cricket, Mantri continued to play for Dadar Parsee Zoroastrian (DPZ) along with Tamhane, in the 1070s, in the lower divisions to groom young talent. Once I was leading the Sassanian Cricket Club in the Kanga League C Division and got a call from my coach Ramakant Achrekar instructing the team to be present on the ground half an hour before the normal time of reporting. Mantri once recounted an incident that occurred on Sachin Tendulkar’s first trip to England (1990) with the Indian team of which Mantri was the manager. India were to play Derbyshire and the management decided to give Sachin a break from that game. He went up to Mantri and pleaded with him to change the team management’s decision. He wanted to face Ian Bishop, one of the quickest bowlers in the world. The management paid heed to Mantri’s advice to play Sachin who scored an unbeaten hundred in that match. Mantri’s passing away signals the end of a glorious era in Mumbai cricket. An age, when cricketers and administrators swore by discipline, dedication and loyalty — a far cry from the realities Mumbai cricket faces today. (The writer is a former Cricket Club of India captain and a Bombay University cricketer) Mail Today Correspondent in New Delhi EXTRA COVER by Hemant Kenkre FIXING to fore AGAIN India’s oldest Test cricketer, Madhav Mantri, died aged 92 in Mumbai on Friday. Death of 92-year-old Mantri signals end of era A DAY after the English and Wales Cricket Board took an epochal decision to charge former player Lou Vincent — along with Naveed Arif of Pakistani origin — on com- bined 20 counts of corrup- tion, the New Zealander on Friday said he hasn’t entered into a “plea bar- gain” with the investigators for his disclosures. On the other hand, Pakistan Cricket Board virtually disowned Arif. On Thursday, BCCI interim president (for IPL) Sunil Gavaskar officially accepted that bookies had indeed approached two players during the IPL. These events have raised ques- tions about the effectiveness of the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU), which keeps an eye on players and book- ies, though with limited resources. And close on the heels of the leak of Vincent’s testimony to the ACSU — and a supposed conver- sation between an ACSU official with an Indian bookie during the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh recently — a 41-page power point presentation contain- ing details of some ‘sus- pects’ has been leaked. The 41-page document says that the ACSU sleuths covered 470 matches and 214 prac- tice sessions in 2011. The total number of nights the nine ACSU officials were ‘away’ was 1,469 while 1,099 players/sup- port personnel/officials received education programme. “They [ACSU] only did this once, then stopped. Never presented to [ICC Executive] Board, I am told,” a source told MAIL TODAY. An ICC official said “presenta- tions are made as and when requested by the ICC Board”. According to the ACSU presen- tation, in 2011, a total of 124 ‘sus- picious actions’ were reported, 67 suspects’ activities were recorded and 11 corrupt approaches were made. The ACSU’s “source of information” were 24 players, 18 officials, 25 members of support staff of teams and 125 ACSU ‘sources’ while 66 ‘operations’ were conducted by it. It reveals that in 2010, 158 intelligence reports were gathered and 281 in 2011. Giving another peep into its activities, the ACSU says that by obtaining itemised billing of cer- tain phone numbers between July 19 and August 25, 2010, about 300 calls/SMSs were either made between bookie Mazhar Majeed’s mobile (+4479****3819 and +4479****8786) and his Mumbai- based Indian associate Bhi**RoShir*** (+9197****7039). They made these calls/SMSs just before the News of The World exposed, through a sting opera- tion, that Majeed had induced Pakistan’s Salman Butt, Moham- mad Amir and Mohammad Asif into spot fixing during a Test at Lord’s, London, in August 2010. Lou Vincent of NZ says he hasn’t entered into a plea bargain with ICC Leaked ACSU dossier lists suspects of fixing world NM | Analysis of her billing data confirmed she was in contact with a number of sus- pected corruptors, & known bookies in India & Dubai. “ACSU inquiries ascertained that NM was clearly using her charms (honey trap) in an attempt to corrupt players,” says ACSU. NM made a ‘cor- rupt approach’ during 2011 World Cup & the player reported the approach to ACSU. RS | An Indian national, his identity was obtained along with that of ‘RA’. Only limited info could be obtained on RS and RA, hence inquiry could- n’t progress. But through their online betting accounts, a link was established with Indian national SK. KB | This Indian’s actions in SL in 2009 raised suspicion but nothing spe- cific. He obtained UK visa in 2010 and was moni- tored in London during England-India series in 2011. ACSU also accessed photos of KB in an elevator of the Crowne Plaza hotel in London on July 25, 2011. PT | This Indian was first observed in Lanka in 2009. As with other individuals, his actions raised suspicion but noth- ing specific. In 2010, ACSU sought further info on him, including his phone data for both Indian and SL num- bers. He was observed at subsequent matches... SK | He was observed in Sri Lanka (report doesn’t say when) & fur- ther intel obtained both in SL & India. In 2010, he initiated a poten- tially corrupt approach to a player. ACSU action helped player avoid potential com- promise. Note: Above text and photos according to an ACSU presentation dated January 23, 2012. ACSU has not identified these people by their full names, only by their initials. DP | Dur- ing the 2009 World T20, he was accompa- nied by his purported girlfriend NM. They ‘did’ some teams and continually attempted to approach players. ACSU identified mobile numbers for each (India, Pakistan & UK), & they were regularly changed. SUSPECTS CONNECTED RA | A British national, he was another male who continually sought to meet play- ers both within hotels and nearby casinos. He offered casino chips to players, further offered to provide call girls and a ‘safe’ hotel room. 29