Fixing controversy disheartens Mahela Jayawardene

Ask the former Sri Lankan captain about the shameful incidents of the past few days, and Jayawardene puts things in a different perspective. "It's disappointing, it's disheartening. I think cricket deserves more from the players, who are its part owners," stated the Delhi Daredevils captain.

Mahela Jayawardene

"I can see the fans are disappointed. I don't know how we can stop this, but we need to work harder, the administration, it's frustrating for them also. They have put in so many efforts, so much money, and then something like this happens," Jayawardene added while talking about the spot fixing saga in the IPL that rocked the cricketing fraternity few days back.

When asked about the role of senior cricketers in preventing such incidents, Jayawardene chose to put the entire blame on individuals, and rightly so. "I mean you look at Rahul Dravid. He has had a great season, he has led the team so well. I am sure he would have spoken to his team-mates about the winning attitude, playing the game in right spirit. And then somebody from his team does this.

"We as seniors can take responsibility and try to teach individuals. But we can go to a certain distance and then it's for the individuals to take responsibility and play the game in right spirit. It's disappointing, but you can't stop, you need to fight this out somehow.

‘A sad day for cricket'
"It's a sad day for cricket. It was a sad day for cricket when it happened to Pakistan team in England and it's a sad day here. But it's important that we move on and make sure that the next generation learns from this. You can teach them as much as you want, but if somebody wants to go in that direction, then they will. So it's important that we teach them a lesson, and the next generation doesn't make the same mistakes."

‘Can't blame T20'
Jayawardene also reminded everyone that IPL or T20 format can't be blamed for the entire chaos. "If you look at the history, it has happened in Test cricket as well as One Day cricket where a lot of players have been caught. So it's not just about T20 cricket, it's been in cricket in general," he signed off.u00a0