Suspicious betting patterns: ICC to scrutinise Pak vs WI matches

Daily Mail report states concerns were raised, in particular, around the tied third match of the series.

Suspicious betting patterns were identified during the five-match series between Pakistan and West Indies, while unusually slow run-rates during certain overs followed by bursts of high scoring have “set alarm bells ringing,” Daily Mail report quoted industry experts as saying.

The report stated that “concerns were raised, in particular, around the tied third match of the series played in St Lucia a week ago on Friday, as well as the final game, which resulted in a last-ball win for Pakistan.”

The second ODI, which saw Pakistan fail to score a run off the bat in the first five overs after being set 233 to win, will also be scrutinised by officers of the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU).

According to the Daily Mail report, one betting website reported “unusually large sums of money being wagered between innings on a tied result during the third ODI after the West Indies were set 230 to win from 50 overs.”

Field placings for the final over, when Jason Holder and fellow tail-ender Kemar Roach crashed 14 off six balls from Wahab Riaz, will be scrutinised, along with a failed run-out bid off the last delivery.

The fifth ODI, which saw Pakistan win by four wickets off the final ball, is also to be scrutinised.

ACSU officers will also analyse patterns on spread-betting sites around the first 18 balls of the West Indies innings when only one run was scored.

Betting expert Ed Hawkins was quoted in the report as saying: “There were suspicious betting patterns on a betting exchange.” He added that “a suspicious pattern, simply, is a flood of money wagered on an outcome just before it happens. There were some noticeable examples of this during the West Indies-Pakistan series. In the tied match, a weight of cash arrived on the tie market before Pakistan’s innings.”

The report also stated that the passage of the play, between the 29th and 34th overs, when experienced West Indies batsmen Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels were at the crease, will also be analysed in an effort to understand why just two runs were scored from five overs before 16 were hit off the 35th over.