ESPNCRICINFO reports that Gary Ballance has retired from all cricket - does anybody know details, what happened ?

[jontym87]

I'm not sure why this thread has become about Jonty and not about Gary. Come on, Jonty has been a valuable contributor for long. Disagreements need not get personal. Yes, some of us are overly harsh on some players, but it's a quip and we move on. Can't have pages of going at each other while the other person is also bringing facts to the table.

The bottom line is probably difficult to accept may be? Also, there was no way Gary could have played an "ICC tournament" - the qualifiers with all the random testings - in this state anyway, would have been a major egg on the face of ZC, so isn't it good that he walked away?

Saying Garry doesn’t add value, needs to do a Logan cup stint and that sniffing coke nullifies tournaments records would do that.

OK if i ask you what has GB done in the last 12-24 months that you say he deserved to walk straight straight into the team. How many games did he play? Any runs?

[secretzimbo]

Jonty the mole

[jontym87]

The really brutal thing here is that the ICC almost never, ever, conduct in-competition testing at bilateral series. At Qualifying tournaments and world cups etc yes, they do frequently. But a random bilateral series between Zim and Ned? It’s unheard of.

It’s therefore almost a certainty that they got a tip-off from someone. Someone reported him. It’s extremely unlikely to have been anyone in the ZC setup considering the amounts of money they were supposedly paying him.

It’s either a severely disgruntled local player here who thinks along the likes of Jonty and was exceptionally bitter that he walked straight into the team and was twice the player they could ever dream of being.

Or it’s someone he upset at Yorkshire. Rafiq and his pals maybe

You think so? That its unheard of? Ask us who have been in the setup and very close to the team will tell you. You are wrong ICC carry out random tests in-competition at bilateral series my guy, I've seen it happening. They actually target countries with no robust anti-doping policies eg Zimbabwe and Pakistan. These are random tests ask Doug Hondo will tell you.

Ask BT. He is convinced someone tipped them off. Says it was unheard of for ICC Anti-doping guys to turn up at a low-key series between e.g. Zim and Ireland like when he got caught.

I will not ask anyone i speak from experiences and what i witnessed with my own eyes. Anti Doping guys even turning up at Airports whilst waiting for connecting flights. Whether tipped or not drugs in sport is a big NO. So should carry their cross and accept they fucked up and got caught out.

[jontym87]

Jonty the mole

:w:

[Googly]

You can't disregard what level of cricket he played and just state he hasn't played any cricket, nor can you disregard what caliber of player he is. It's vexing me that you disagree
Clearly ZC were convinced that he was needed, which is a good thing, it means they were listening. Maybe they've changed their minds now though
DH must be bitterly disappointed and has egg on his face for sure, hard to distance himself from this. I'd think this has made it very difficult for any other players thinking about returning.

Ya I think the snitch thing will forever be prevalent and it certainly makes for a disjointed team with everyone guarding themselves, particularly those that misbehave.
Obviously as a squad member you are expected to meet certain expectations from your fellow team members, which evidently our blokes are not too sharp at. Once you go down a bad path you isolate yourself completely. I know this horrible incident has set us back on many levels and I'm honestly gutted, I really believed we were on the up.

[Kriterion_BD]

Rafiq destroyed him.

Did Rafiq destroy BT or Jongwe as well?

Their is clearly a problem with culture of glorification of things like recreational drugs and Alcohol. Alcohol is the gateway. Until people realize it’s use is abuse and treat it as a vice, these things will happen.

BT and now Ballance. Can’t just be a coincidence.

[secretzimbo]

Rafiq destroyed him.

Did Rafiq destroy BT or Jongwe as well?

Their is clearly a problem with culture of glorification of things like recreational drugs and Alcohol. Alcohol is the gateway. Until people realize it’s use is abuse and treat it as a vice, these things will happen.

BT and now Ballance. Can’t just be a coincidence.

Jongwe just likes a good party therefore he knows not to do it near a series.

BT and Ballance have mental health issues and that’s why. I’m not defending either of them, they have made grave mistakes and we’ll all be left with the mess. They deserve punishment of course.

BT made the mistake of going to India in the first place. That was gravely stupid and ultimately what led to his issues and his subsequent descent into drugs.

Ballance was hung out to dry by a self-serving Rafiq who absolutely destroyed him.

I’m not defending the choices of either of course.

As for alcohol, I disagree obviously, but that’s obviously your cultural background so we aren’t going to.

[secretzimbo]

There’s vast drug issues in Zimbabwe more widely. Really huge.

But kids in townships sniffing diapers or glue or whatever is very different from two mid-30’s white guys, very wealthy, with families, with severe recent trauma and health issues.

I don’t think either BT or Ballance actively thought ‘lol recreational drugs are fun let’s do them hahaha woohoo’.

[secretzimbo]

It’s a difficult place to live at the best of times p

[Googly]

The marching dust is a big issue here, particularly amongst the elite. Quite a few deaths over the years from dealers cutting it to pieces with all kinds of nonsense and then topping it up with ephedrine so the user thinks he's getting a kick but it's just his heart about to screech to a halt.
Once 5 young white folk expired within a week, but it's prevalent throughout the cultures. Spot a guy in a super car and wonder what their side business is