Match fixing allegations surface against Pak players
Saturday, April 10, 2010
10:55 PM
Labels: 2010 , 2010 Pakistan , 2010 World Cup , match fixing , Pakistan , T20 , 0 comments
Pakistan cricketer once again hit by a match-fixing allegation as with the start of the year’s county season, police announced they were investigating two Essex players for ‘match irregularities’ and despite a very precise release by the Essex County the name of Danish Kaneria has been dragged into the media reports as one of the suspect. A news report in Daily Telegraph claimed that spinner would be investigated by police over match-fixing along with another Essex player following incidents in one-day matches last summer. It also said that Kaneria’s future at Essex is now in doubt.
Acxording to the newspaper, Telegraph Sport has been conducting its own investigation for some time and after it had made some queries to Essex Police yesterday morning, the England & Wales Cricket Board suddenly issued a brief statement from Essex Police Friday evening stating that inquiries are currently being conducted into the actions of two Essex players, one of whom is believed to be Pakistan’s leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, in a match last season. Essex Police’s statement read: “Following allegations received about two Essex county cricket players involved in match irregularities, we have initiated an investigation and are working closely with Essex County Cricket Club and the English Cricket Board.”
Investigations are thought to centre upon a televised one-day forty-over match at the end of last season, and, whilst there appears to be no suggestion that the result of the match in question was fixed, it is likely the allegations concern what is called `spot fixing’, whereby the outcome of a minor aspect of a game is fixed. It is thought that the ECB, as well as the International Cricket Council’s Anti Corruption and Security Unit, headed by Lord Condon, were informed immediately upon suspicions being raised, but chose instead to hand the matter over to the Essex Police. Already a number of Essex players are thought to have been interviewed by police, but Kaneria has yet to return to the UK for the County Championship season that began last Friday, his arrival having been delayed last week by the sudden and surprise decision of the Pakistan Cricket Board to hold their RBS Pentangular Cup prior to their summer tour of England. Kaneria is now due to arrive in England on April 29th.
The County Championship season may have begun yesterday in glorious weather yesterday, but this story will rock the game in this country, where followers and administrators have long considered it immune from and above such gambling-related corruption. It does, though, come at a time when there is widespread concern over the return of illegal bookmakers to the game in general. Rumours abound about `spot-fixing’ at the Indian Premier League and it was confirmed there had been approaches to players during last year’s World Twenty20 competition in England, leading to Lord Condon warning at ICC board meetings last summer that cricket was facing its gravest threat since the bad old days of the late nineties and the disgrace of the late South Africa skipper Hansie Cronje. Although very different in nature, the last allegations of corruption to hit county cricket also involved Essex. In 1994 their seam bowler Don Topley, supported by team-mate Guy Lovell, alleged that during a weekend in August 1991 Essex contrived to lose a Sunday League match against Lancashire at Old Trafford in return for being allowed to win the County Championship match (and later take the title) that finished the following day.
Topley himself confessed that he had deliberately under-performed in the one-day match. Initially the allegations were dismissed by the old Test and County Cricket Board, however, the matter was revisited in 2000/01 and an independent inquiry was chaired by Gerard Elias QC . No action was taken. The ECB added last night of the current storm: “As this is an ongoing Police investigation there will be no further comment while the investigation is underway.”
Acxording to the newspaper, Telegraph Sport has been conducting its own investigation for some time and after it had made some queries to Essex Police yesterday morning, the England & Wales Cricket Board suddenly issued a brief statement from Essex Police Friday evening stating that inquiries are currently being conducted into the actions of two Essex players, one of whom is believed to be Pakistan’s leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, in a match last season. Essex Police’s statement read: “Following allegations received about two Essex county cricket players involved in match irregularities, we have initiated an investigation and are working closely with Essex County Cricket Club and the English Cricket Board.”
Investigations are thought to centre upon a televised one-day forty-over match at the end of last season, and, whilst there appears to be no suggestion that the result of the match in question was fixed, it is likely the allegations concern what is called `spot fixing’, whereby the outcome of a minor aspect of a game is fixed. It is thought that the ECB, as well as the International Cricket Council’s Anti Corruption and Security Unit, headed by Lord Condon, were informed immediately upon suspicions being raised, but chose instead to hand the matter over to the Essex Police. Already a number of Essex players are thought to have been interviewed by police, but Kaneria has yet to return to the UK for the County Championship season that began last Friday, his arrival having been delayed last week by the sudden and surprise decision of the Pakistan Cricket Board to hold their RBS Pentangular Cup prior to their summer tour of England. Kaneria is now due to arrive in England on April 29th.
The County Championship season may have begun yesterday in glorious weather yesterday, but this story will rock the game in this country, where followers and administrators have long considered it immune from and above such gambling-related corruption. It does, though, come at a time when there is widespread concern over the return of illegal bookmakers to the game in general. Rumours abound about `spot-fixing’ at the Indian Premier League and it was confirmed there had been approaches to players during last year’s World Twenty20 competition in England, leading to Lord Condon warning at ICC board meetings last summer that cricket was facing its gravest threat since the bad old days of the late nineties and the disgrace of the late South Africa skipper Hansie Cronje. Although very different in nature, the last allegations of corruption to hit county cricket also involved Essex. In 1994 their seam bowler Don Topley, supported by team-mate Guy Lovell, alleged that during a weekend in August 1991 Essex contrived to lose a Sunday League match against Lancashire at Old Trafford in return for being allowed to win the County Championship match (and later take the title) that finished the following day.
Topley himself confessed that he had deliberately under-performed in the one-day match. Initially the allegations were dismissed by the old Test and County Cricket Board, however, the matter was revisited in 2000/01 and an independent inquiry was chaired by Gerard Elias QC . No action was taken. The ECB added last night of the current storm: “As this is an ongoing Police investigation there will be no further comment while the investigation is underway.”
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