Cricket: Moin blasts Condon’s remarks

Former Pakistan captain questions ACU’s role.

Former Pakistan captain Moin Khan has criticised the ex-chief of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) Paul Condon after his claims that leading countries were involved in fixing matches, according to the ESPNStar website.

Condon’s comments came in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal that saw three Pakistan players being handed out different sentences in London. He stated that the ACU was aware that ‘fixing’ was rampant in the 1990s and ‘Test and World Cup matches were being fixed’.

However, Moin, a former wicket-keeper who made his debut in the early 1990s, lashed out at the former ACU chief for his statements. “I don’t understand the purpose of his statement now,” Moin was quoted as saying on the ESPNStar website. “If the ACU knew fixing was so widespread, what action did they take to bring the guilty teams or players to book after the ACU was formed in 2000?”

Moin, who now runs his cricket academy in Karachi, said he was surprised by Condon’s statement, but said it was, in a way, good for Pakistan since it cleared the misconception that only the country’s players were involved in corruption.

“His statement, in a way, does restore Pakistan’s image and confirms that corruption and fixing isn’t a problem restricted to one team or region.”

He also spoke about how a Pakistani player, who went to England on ACU expenses, refused to give evidence at the last moment. “Nobody will be willing to risk his family until the ICC and the ACU provide proper security and safety.”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 18^th,  2011.