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Well Bowled : How Internal Audit in India
Can Follow Cricket’s Lead
The Strategic Game
Cricket is often called a game of chess played on
grass.
Every ball bowled, every field placement, and
every batting decision comes after careful
deliberation. The captain must anticipate several
moves ahead while remaining flexible enough to
Tom McLeod adapt when circumstances change.
Chief Risk and Client Impact Officer This mirrors the strategic nature of internal audit,
Yellow Canary where planning is paramount but adaptability
tomcleod1@gmail.com is essential. Audit teams must develop
comprehensive audit plans while remaining
I live about 10 kms from one of the great sporting agile enough to respond to emerging risks or
cathedrals of the world – the Melbourne Cricket organisational changes.
Ground.
In cricket, a team might spend hours building
This last summer I had the great pleasure to an innings, carefully accumulating runs while
watch a scintillating Test match between India preserving wickets, only to accelerate dramatically
and Australia and it reminded me that few games when conditions favour aggressive play.
match cricket’s blend o f strategy, patience, and
sudden moments of brilliance. Similarly, internal auditors meticulously gather
evidence and build their understanding of
As I was sitting there I wondered about whether business processes before determining where to
there were analogies between the great game of focus their deeper analysis.
cricket and the profession that I have dedicated
my career to – Internal Audit. Both disciplines require patience combined with
the ability to recognise when to act decisively.
Just as in matches past the late, great Shane Warne’s
masterful spin bowling and Sachin Tendulkar’s Cricket exemplifies the qualities most valued in
sublime batting technique established them as the internal audit—control, discipline, data analysis,
greatest to ever grace the cricket field, exceptional environmental adaptation, and inclusivity.
internal audit functions demonstrate comparable
mastery of their craft. A batsman’s disciplined approach to risk
management, leaving dangerous deliveries while
This article explores how cricket serves as a capitalising on scoring opportunities, mirrors
remarkable analogy for internal audit practices the controlled judgment exercised by effective
and examines how India, having transformed into auditors.
a cricket powerhouse, is poised to achieve similar
dominance in the global internal audit landscape. The sport’s embrace of detailed performance
And long may India and Australia meet each other metrics—from strike rates to economy rates—
on the playing fields of the world as countries in provides a data-driven foundation for decision-
arms. making that parallels modern audit’s increasing
INTERNAL AUDIT TODAY 66
