The History of Cricket ,A Trip Through the Bookie Era
Cricket has changed a lot over the years. Its offices have moved from England to the Arab world, and the people who run the sport have changed for different periods of time. This change has not only changed how the game is played, but it has also made people question the ethics of cricket control, which is why some people call this time the “Bookie Era.”
While cricket was still based in England, there were clear rules that made the game very popular in its early years. It became common in the cricket society to follow these rules and be obedient to them. But when the International Cricket Council (ICC) moved its operations to the Arab world, it caused a huge change. In the spirit of the game, this change was a turning point; the established order started to fall apart.
In the world of Arab cricket, one important event was the creation of a game called the Austral-Asia Cup (1986–1994). This game, which was put together by Arabs, made people look twice and set the stage for a series of events that would change the future of cricket. A investor and cricket fan named Abdul Rehman Bukhatir came up with the idea for the Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS) in the early 1980s.
At first, the CBFS was seen as a good way to help former cricket players, but it finally got into trouble. As money came in, people started to wonder what the real goals of the series were. This was especially true after the match-fixing incident in 2000, which shocked the cricket world. Some people thought that the CBFS might not have been real and was just a front to get cricket boards to send their best players to Sharjah after the incident.
A former BCCI official who thought back on that time showed how naïve cricket managers were when they thought that helping former players was the right thing to do. The allure of gifts, freebies, and big event fees may have clouded the judgment of those involved, so they didn’t look closely enough at where the money came from and who might have given it.
There was more and more Arab impact on cricket as the game developed, which led to what some people have called the “Bookie Era.” Since the ICC was now based in the Arab world, it was hard to keep the same level of order and control that existed in cricket when it was based in England. People were worried about the integrity of the sport and how the change in power might affect its spirit.
The memory of the CBFS is a reminder of a time long ago in the world of cricket. The Indian Premier League (IPL) and other cricket leagues’ popularity have made these kinds of funds less important. As a reminder of a time when cricket changed in surprising ways in search of fame and money, the once-revered CBFS stands as a relic of the past.
Finally, the story of cricket’s journey from its orderly home in England to the chaos of the Arab world shows how complicated the sport’s history is. Cricket and money are linked, as seen with the CBFS and other examples. This shows how important it is for strict rules to be followed to keep the heart of the game alive in a world that is always changing.
