Tim Paine Urges Australia to ‘Rig’ Scotland’s Game to Eliminate England from T20+World Cup 2024

Former Australian Test captain Tim Paine has sparked controversy by suggesting that Australia should engage in underhanded tactics to eliminate arch-rival England from the 2024 T20+World Cup. In a recent interview, Paine stated: “We need to find a way to rig Scotland’s game against England. We owe it to ourselves and to the fans. If we can deny England a place in the semi-finals, it would be a huge blow for them and a massive boost for us.” Paine’s comments have drawn sharp criticism from the international cricketing community. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has condemned his proposal as “unsportsmanlike and illegal.” “Match-fixing is a serious offense that has no place in cricket,” said ICC CEO Geoff Allardice. “We strongly condemn any attempt to manipulate the outcome of a match, and we will investigate this matter thoroughly.” Australia’s current Test captain, Pat Cummins, has also distanced himself from Paine’s remarks. “Tim’s comments were made in jest, but it’s important to remember that match-fixing is a very serious issue,” Cummins said. “We will always play within the spirit of the game.” Despite the backlash, Paine has defended his position. “I’m not advocating for cheating,” he said. “I’m simply suggesting that we find a way to level the playing field against England. They have a strong team, but they’re not invincible.” The T20+World Cup 2024 is scheduled to be held in the United States and the Caribbean from June 14 to July 14. England is currently ranked as one of the favorites to win the tournament.

Defending champions England find themselves in a precarious situation after a dull match and a tough loss against Australia, who qualified for the Super Eights.

Defending champions England find themselves in a precarious situation after a dull match and a tough loss against Australia, who qualified for the Super Eights.

“They absolutely should (manipulate the result) and I’m not even joking. I’ve talked to people about this in the last few days. I’m very serious about it,” Paine said in Radio Sen.

As things stand in Group B, England are fourth with just one point and -1,800 Net Run Rate. They have two more games left. Even if they win both matches, they won’t be able to overtake Scotland, who sit in second place with five points and a healthy NRR of ++2.164.

To advance to the Super Eight, Jos Buttler and company not only have to win the remaining two games by large margins, but also hope that their familiar enemies and table leaders, Australia, hand Scotland a big defeat to put a dent in the NRR of the Scots.

Paine clarified that he does not want Australia to lose the match, but rather for it to be close enough for England to be eliminated.

“I’m not sure what the net run rate will be like, there’s no need to lose the game, I think they can let Scotland get close enough.”

“Again, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, Scotland could have a day off. But let’s say Scotland batted first and got to 140 and we chased it down 19.5 overs to make sure they don’t suffer a big net loss in run rate.

“I think England have to win both their matches by around 50 runs to even match Scotland’s net run rate. So it’s certainly plausible that you could win the match (but still ensure England don’t progress),” he added. +++.+

The former batsman sees this as a “smart and calculated” move that can help Australia later in the tournament.

“That’s not just because it’s England. You have to go into these tournaments trying to win a World Cup. Who could pose a threat in the later rounds? That’s England.” Despite the poor start, Paine feels England have the ability to turn things around and defend their title.

“There is no doubt that they are still one of the best teams in the world, they had a horrible start and now it is in our hands.

“If you could eliminate one of the most popular teams in the tournament and do it in a way where you’re not deliberately losing a game, I’m all for it.

“You’re manipulating the net run rates a little bit… you can say what you want, but to me, it’s smart, calculated tournament play.

“We are there to win a World Cup. ++I wouldn’t like to play against England in the semi-final. ++They have six or seven players who could take a game away from you, like Australia does.

“If a team like that doesn’t advance to the next phase, it will be easier for you to win the World Cup.” he added.

Knocking out England in the best interest: Josh

Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood also acknowledged the potential benefit of hindering England’s progress and said it would serve the “best interest” of all teams.

“Yes, I think so. In this tournament you will potentially face England again at some point,” Hazlewood said in the media interaction after their huge nine-wicket win over Namibia in North Sound.

“They are probably one of the best teams on their day and we have had some real struggles against them in T20 cricket, so if we can get them out of the tournament that is the best for us and probably for everyone else.” ++Hazlewood, however, suggested the team’s approach will remain unchanged, leaving decisions on “manipulation” of the game to others.

“But yeah, it’ll be interesting to see. We’ve never been in this position as a team before, I don’t think, so whether we have conversations or not, we’ll just try to play that way again.”++we did it tonight. ++Yes, that will depend on the people, not on me.” +

Published June 12, 2024, 10:08 IST

Former Australia captain Tim Paine has called on his side to “rig” Scotland’s game and eliminate England from the 2024 T20 World Cup. England’s progression to the semi-finals is dependent on Scotland beating Australia in their final group game. “I think Australia should go out there and rig the game,” Paine said on SEN radio. “I think they should do whatever it takes to win that game. I think they should try and get Scotland all out for 50 or 60 runs.” Paine’s comments have been met with widespread criticism, with many accusing him of being unsportsmanlike. “This is a disgrace,” said former England captain Michael Vaughan. “It’s against the spirit of the game. It’s not what cricket is about.” The International Cricket Council (ICC) has also condemned Paine’s comments. “The ICC does not condone any form of cheating or match-fixing,” an ICC spokesperson said. “We urge all players to respect the spirit of the game and to play within the laws of the game.” Australia will face Scotland in their final group game on Saturday.