Going by the age-old adage that public memory is short, a certain number of players from the neighbouring country have nothing to worry about. I am referring to the current controversy surrounding spot-fixing, throwing matches, under-performing and mingling of young Pakistani players with bookies in England.

Though it makes for extremely juicy copy for us journalists and equally fancy front pages, the general public will soon get bored of it and move on. A week of sensationalism and the common man wants a new topic to discuss and mingle with while gossiping on the daily commute to work and back. The heavy downpour was a huge part of the discussions, followed by the sad state of our potholed roads. And then came the favourite big bomb of spot-fixing.

Three Pak players were called in for questioning, and reprimanded. The general populace in the neighbouring country made an ass of itself by protesting with donkeys labelled with the names of the players. All nice and angry for now, but how long will this rage really last?

Take the perfect example on our own home soil. Not very long ago, the foundation of our trust in the Men in White was shattered when allegations of match-fixing broke out. A former captain, the then captain, and two skippers of other countries, were named in the mother of all scandals. A couple of players were banned for life, some for a few years. The country was enraged.

Fair enough, we would say. After all, cricket is a religion in this country and the players are no lesser than gods. However, having said that, the very same players were soon forgiven and all was forgotten too.