Unite and rule

If indeed everything does happen for a reason then the recent carnage in Mumbai was a strong reminder of the desperate need for some good old-fashioned, strong, honest leadership.

The world is holding its breath in the hope that American president-elect Barack Obama can be the man to provide the shining example that others will follow. Eventually we need to have a world where all mankind has a chance to feel included in society. If Obama can set this miracle in motion then perhaps the world can look forward to a safer future where the killing of innocent people is drastically reduced.

The mayhem in Mumbai was also a chilling reminder of cricket's fragility. While cricket is way down the list on the scale of importance, there's a similar need for strong leadership so that the game's integrity can eventually match its financial clout. This is going to take a collective effort from the players and officials of all major cricket nations. "We are all custodians of the game," Sir Donald Bradman said. If ever those words need to be heeded, it is in the year of his 100th anniversary.

The one big difference between the world situation and that of cricket is the lack of any leader with the potential and charisma of an Obama looming on the horizon in cricket.

Now that India and England have conspired to defy the threats and play the planned two-Test series, it will provide a wonderful example of what can happen when there is a will to cooperate. However, this show of comradeship needs to be followed up with strong leadership. The game's future must be a planned, well-thought-out affair rather than an imitation of a runaway train with no one at the levers.

The cancellation, following the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, of the remaining two games in England's one-day series, the Champions League, and the rest of the ICL, was a wake-up call for a game that has become way too dependent on and subservient to India. Considering the haste with which the rest of the cricket world knelt greedily at India's wealthy vault without question, there was never going to be a happy ending. It was like a remake of Wall Street, where Gordon Gekko preached, "Greed is good."

There is the issue also of the growing disparity between playing standards among even the major nations. Following a Test series between India and Australia that promised much but often featured cynical field placings and slow over-rates, we have had two of the most lacklustre contests of all time.

Two one-sided series, Australia v New Zealand, and South Africa v Bangladesh, have helped highlight the inequities in the Test-match arena. Test cricket is shaping up as a mirror image of an Indian society that is often described as being made up of the have lots and the have nots.

The lop-sided nature of those two series was ample proof that there are not enough good cricketers to go round, let alone after some good ones have been banned because of their association with the ICL. If there is to be an all-inclusive approach to cricket's future following the Mumbai mayhem, these bans should come under serious discussion.

Then there is the fragile future of Pakistan cricket to consider. Wracked by political turmoil, threatened by terrorism, and lacking India's wealth, Pakistan cricket has become a pariah, shunned by players and administrators alike. A region that once provided more talented young natural players than most, Pakistan is now in danger of becoming a cricketing backwater. For a while now, Pakistan cricket has felt it is being discriminated against when it comes to issues of safety, and it is easy to see why they may feel that money speaks all languages but Urdu.

It's going to require a good deal of compassion, especially in India's case, and courage, to welcome Pakistan back into the fold, but every effort must be made because cricket doesn't have enough good teams to be able to cast aside one of its major nations.

The world desperately watches and waits and hopes that Obama can succeed and help make it a safer, more inclusive society. No sport perhaps has a greater need for Obama to lead successfully than cricket, which is played in so many volatile areas of the world.