Commissioner to probe scam

The move came with a clarification that the cricketers had not been punished but simply suspended for a while.

The International Cricket Council (ICC)  said on Sunday that it would appoint an independent commissioner to probe into the whole spot-fixing scam. The move,  announced by ICC president Sharad Pawar, came with a clarification from the world cricket regulator that it had not punished the three Pakistani cricketers implicated in the alleged scam but had merely suspended them for a while.

“We have not punished anybody yet,” the ICC president said. The three players - Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif  - will be able to put their views before the commissioner.

They have a right to contest their provisional suspension, the ICC said. They will have a further opportunity to defend the charges at a full hearing before an independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal in accordance with Article 5 of the code, it said.

However, Pawar pointed out that “any action would be taken on the recommendation of the appointed commissioner”.  Under the ICC anti-corruption rules, Pawar said, the suspected players needed to be notified and an investigation conducted.  Pawar’s comments came in response to Pakistan High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan’s remarks that their star players’ suspension was a “conspiracy” and the ICC president was responsible for that.

“We have to send a notice to that particular player but that notice is not a final decision. It is a means of giving him (player) an opportunity to explain his position,” Pawar said.  “This is not an action (the suspension), this is a sort of notice to them and an opportunity to explain,” he said. “If he (the player) is not guilty then certainly he has the right to put out his views,” said Pawar.

In an earlier statement, ICC confirmed that the ‘cash-for-no-ball’ accused “have been officially notified of the offences they are alleged to have committed and have been provisionally suspended pending a decision on those charges. In accordance with the provisions of the code, this means they are immediately barred from participating in all cricket and related activities until the case has been concluded,” the ICC statement said.

Video-tape released

Pakistan’s opening batsman Yasir Hameed was forced on the back foot on Sunday when the British tabloid News of the World presented video evidence of him speaking to their undercover reporter and incriminating many of his team-mates in a match-fixing scandal.

Hameed, who initially denied giving an interview to the tabloid, now says he was lured into a conversation with Mazher Mahmood under false pretexts. Mahmood, according to Hameed, did not tell him he was a journalist nor did he tell him that their conversation was being video-taped.

Hameed, 32, confirmed on tape that his teammates were fixing “almost every match”. “They’ve been caught. Only the ones that get caught are branded crooks. They were doing it (fixing) in almost every match. God knows what they were up to. Scotland Yard was after them for ages,” he told Majeed.  “It makes me angry because I’m playing my best and they are trying to lose.”

And, predicting the likely fate of the players exposed by the News of the World, Hameed added darkly: “The guys that have done this have got themselves into trouble. They’re gone - forget about them.” The video-tape was made two days after Majeed broke the news of a spot-fixing scam involving Pakistan captain Salman Butt and fast bowlers Muhammad Amir and Muhammad Asif.

Hameed’s remarks will put pressure on the ICC investigation and the preposterous defence thrown up last week by shamed Pakistan skipper Salman Butt, bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir and their Pakistan Cricket Board bosses.

Hameed also described how he became a victim of betting cartels’ vengeance for refusing to fix games. “It’s because of all these wrong things that I was outed, because I wouldn’t get involved,” he told Majeed.  “I’ve been offered huge amounts of money, up to £150,000. I wouldn’t get involved. That’s why I was out of the team for two years - two years!”

“The truth is I’ve never sold a match for Pakistan. I’ve always got by on legitimate money. I come from a middle-class hard-working family,” he said. Hameed detailed how the lure of riches had led some of his comparatively poorly paid teammates to fall for the lure of match-fixers.

By contrast with the limited fees of around £2,000 a match, Hameed said the potential rewards for rigging games were huge.

Detailing the crooked price list of the match-fixers, he said: “The £150,000 (paid to Majeed) was just (a deposit) to show what would happen on this ball, what would happen on the other ball.  “In the future, imagine how much money they would have made. Imagine how many pounds they would have made! “He (Majeed) pays the players whatever the rate is. I think they get £20,000 or £25,000 for no balls. God knows what was the deal, I didn’t ask.”

(With additional input from news wires)

Published in The Express Tribune, September 6^th, 2010.