Cricket has always been considered as a game played with emotions and belief, it's also the same game where one can surely learn some big lessons of life as well.
Captains, more often considered as 'leaders' of their respective team, are looked up to as the ample ambassadors of the game.
But unfortunately, over the years there were some captains who got up in controversies regarding cheating, some for fixing matches & some for not being responsible enough to abide by the rules set by ICC.
Let's take a look at five of the most popular captains who were involved in such incidents...
• Md. Azharuddin - Former Indian Captain and the most elegant middle-order batsman of his time, Azharuddin was someone who lit up the cricketing world with his arrival in cricket by (still unbroken) smashing record 3 back to back international centuries in ODI's.
Captaincy - Under Azharuddin India managed to win 90 ODIs and 14 tests, a record which was broken in 2014 by MS.Dhoni.
Case - Azharuddin was accused of alleged match-fixing in the match-fixing scandal of the year 2000; The then CBI report stated that he was the one who introduced former South African captain Hansie Cronje to the bookies when South African team toured India in 1996. He was adjudged a life ban by the authorities of BCCI and ICC, which was further lifted by the Andhra Pradesh High Court after fighting for 11 years.
• Hansie Cronje - Former South African captain and stylish all rounder Cronje was someone who was voted as the 11th greatest South African in 2004 even after being proved guilty of fixing matches in the year 2000, such was his stature in South African Cricket.
Captaincy - Cronje led South Africa to a record 23 wins in 53 tests with 99 wins in ODI's as well.
Case - Cronje was accused of taking money in order to influence the result of the One Day International series played between South Africa and India in February/March 2000.
He initially denied the allegations but later accepted to receive up to ₹ 100000 for his involvement in match-fixing, with infamously stating that, "I am not addicted to alcohol or nicotine, but I have an unfortunate love for money".
• Steve Smith - Former Australian Captain and a current constituent of "The Fab Four", Smith is someone who is a real inspiration for youngsters, his hard work and determination for the game is really commendable. He was someone who started his career as a leg spinner, but his hunger to perform well in every aspect of the game made him one of the best batsmen in the world at the moment.
Captaincy - He was as captain when he was sacked for the ball-tampering saga in 2018, although he led a young Australian team to 18 tests and 25 one day victories.
Case-Smith was banned for a year in 2018 because he was part of the "leadership group" who planned to temper the ball during the 3rd day of the third test between Australia and South Africa.
Three players, Smith, Warner & Cameron Bancroft were alleged to be involved in tampering the ball's condition by the use of sandpaper, following which Smith & Warner were suspended for a year and Bancroft for a period of 9 months.
• Saleem Malik - Former Pakistan Captain and wristy middle-order batsman, Malik was said to be the strongest square of the wicket player of his generation. But despite being a part of 100+ test matches, malik will always be remembered for ashaming the game by taking bribery from bookies to fix matches around the 21st century.
Captaincy - Malik captained Pakistan in 12 tests, winning 7 & held an equally good record in ODI's has he won 21 of the 34 matches he captained.
Case - Malik was accused of offering bribes to some top Australian cricketers to underperform, he was the first-ever player to be slapped with a life ban for match-fixing in 2000.
Although, a decade one of Lahore's local court overturned the ban and swept aside all match-fixing allegations.
• Sakib Al Hasan - Often considered as the best all-rounder of this generation, Sakib Al Hasan is definitely one of the best players Bangladesh Cricket has ever got.
Captaincy - Being the most senior player in the current team and his good work as a Captain previously, Sakib was looked as the perfect replacement after long-time captain Mashrafe Mortaza asked BCB for two months’ time to work on his retirement plans.
His previous captaincy stint recorded 3 Test wins in 23 Test matches and 23 victories in 50 ODI matches.
Case - Shakib admitted to three charges of failing to disclose full details of approaches or invitations he received to engage in corrupt conduct in January 2018 during the tri-series featuring Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe, and during 2018 Indian Premier League.
Shakib has been banned from cricket for one year for breaching the anti-corruption code. He will be free to resume international cricket on/after 29th October 2020.
