Shakib Al Husson banned from all cricket.

Shakib Al Hasan now has a year of darkness to ponder over what his actions.

lack of them, have led to. Another superstar of the game banned, for a wilful infraction far greater, in our minds, than the brazen ball-tampering that put Steven Smith and David Warner out of the game for a year. What a relief that no trace of match-fixing has come to light, but in the name of whatever god you may want to invoke, just what was Shakib thinking?

The cold glare of immediacy is harsh: the punishment for failing to report not one but at least three obvious approaches from a bookie is not Shakib's alone; the damage is far more profound. He has let down his team, the fans, and the game that has brought him fame and fortune.

Every cricketer must know in his or her heart that match-fixing is the most heinous of sporting sins. It strips the game of every worthy thing: honour, faith, belief, truth and heroes. There is nothing redeeming about sledging, and ball-tampering is a form of cheating, but it can tenuously be argued that these misdeamenours are employed in the pursuit of winning at least.