Imran Khan & Former Pakistani Cricketers Rehman Malik Match Fixing Comments on Pakistani Team Is Rubbish

ISLAMABAD: Better known for his verbal faux-pas, Pakistan's interior minister  Rehman Malik warned the country's cricket team on Monday against match-fixing, saying the government would be closely scrutinizing them in the match against  India in Mohali. 

Rehman Malik Said "I gave them a warning yesterday that there should be no match-fixing. I am keeping a close watch. If any such thing happens, we are going to take action," Malik told reporters in Karachi  . 

He described the current cricket team as comprising of clean members but said: "It is necessary to monitor the player because we can't take a chance after what happened in London . I should not have revealed but we keep an eye on people who meet our players, with whom they talk by telephone." 

The International Cricket Council's anti-corruption tribunal punished former Pakistani captain Salman Butt and two fast bowlers, Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Aamer for spot-fixing with lengthy bans from the game in February. The trio's involvement in spot-fixing at Lord's Test last year was shocking for the cricket-loving Pakistani nation.

No one knows about Rehman Malik's managerial role in the affairs of Pakistan Cricket Board, although, he had also some good advice for the players.

"They should concentrate on their practice and must go to bed early. They should ensure discipline and rise up according to their schedule. I advise them to dedicate themselves to the game for Pakistan."

Malik's comments were met with hard hitting response from Pakistani cricket legends. Imran Khan, a Pakistan cricket legend turned politician said, "I am more worried about Malik than the cricket team. For all who might not know, Malik was absconding from justice until very recently."

Khan said the minister does not have a very good command on the English language so he must have meant something else. No one in the Pakistani team will even read that statement. They've much better things to do," Khan said. If one wants to stamp out corruption, the cricket boards and the ICC needs to get more vigilant. He said spot-fixing was a very difficult thing to detect.

Former Pakistani Test player Zaheer Abbas rubbished Malik's remarks, saying it was inappropriate for Malik to make such comments at this time.

"Rather than boosting the morale of the players, the interior minister is trying to demoralize them," he said.

Former Pakistani opener Aamir Sohail said that the minister should have conveyed his message to the team personally rather than saying it on media. "However, there are fears of match-fixing in the semifinal," he remarked. 

Akhtar, Akmal dope-tested ahead of ICC World Cup 2011

News Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/Former-Pakistan-cricketers-rubbish-Maliks-comments/articleshow/7809103.cms

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ICC-appointed tribunal biased, says Salman’s lawyer

KARACHI: Following the withdrawal of Aftab Gul, Salman Butt’s other lawyer Khalid Ranjha has called for a change in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) appointed three-man tribunal that would hear the spot-fixing case against the three suspended Pakistan players. Salman, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, who were suspended following spot-fixing allegations, are due to appear before the tribunal for the actual charges, led by the ICC code of conduct commissioner Michael Beloff, in January.

However, Ranjha said Beloff, who also headed the ICC hearing against the players’ provisional suspension last month, should recuse himself because of an “obvious bias”. Salman’s legal team had already suffered a blow when Gul withdrew from the case saying that he doubted that players will get justice.

“At this point, I agree with Gul because you can’t expect fairness from a man who is biased against you,” Ranjha told The Express Tribune. “We are not satisfied with Beloff’s verdict in Dubai [against the suspension]. Beloff should recuse himself because we doubt his justice.”

Ranjha, a former federal law minister, said he would like to present the case in front of another individual.

“It is my desire that someone other than Beloff be appointed,” said Ranjha before hinting his possible withdrawal from the case as well.

“It would also be difficult for me to fight the case in presence of the same judge. The decision is against the interests of my client,” said Ranjha. “It would be like fighting a case against your own appeal.”

Meanwhile, following Gul’s withdrawal, Salman is totally relying on Ranjha for the ICC hearing and was hopeful of getting his name cleared from spot-fixing allegations.

The hearing of all the three players will be heard from January 6 to 11 in Qatar.

The ICC CEO Haroon Lorgat had earlier advised the suspended trio and their lawyers not to mix the hearings of the three-man tribunal with the one held last month. While maintaining that the two hearings are separate, Lorgat also defended Beloff’s appointment saying that under the ICC code of conduct commission rules, its chairman had to sit in tribunal hearings.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 15^th, 2010.

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Pakistan drop five 'tainted' stars for 2011 World Cup

Salman Butt Pakistani Player

LONDON: Pakistan has provisionally agreed not to select five players for next year's World Cup in the subcontinent as they seek to come clean on match-fixing charges against some stars.

Former Test captain Salman Butt, fast bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer, wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and leg-spinner Danish Kaneria- who was involved in an alleged spot-fixing scandal on the English county scene - have been blacklisted in response to last month's ultimatum by the ICC, which gave the Pakistan board 30 days to take a action against corruption.

According to the Daily Star, Akmal has been under investigation for his role in Pakistan's controversial defeat by Australia in January's Sydney Test.

On the other hand, Kaneria was recently cleared by police over allegations of spot-fixing, but has not been offered a new contract by Essex. The other three are also accused of spot-fixing during the England series.

News Source : Times Of India

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PCB told to omit Kamran, Kaneria from 2011 World Cup squad: Sources

Image Source : Wikipedia

KARACHI: Pakistan selectors are unlikely to pick experienced wicketkeeper  Kamran Akmal and leg-spinner Danish Kaneria in their provisional squad of 30 for the 2011 World Cup in the sub-continent.

Sources said that Pakistan Cricket Board has been told in clear terms by the ICC to ensure the two players don't feature in any national team until the ongoing investigations into the spot-fixing allegations against Salman Butt, Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif are completed.

The ICC had given a list of players to the PCB making it clear they should not be playing for Pakistan till the investigations are completed, one well-placed source said.

"There are clear directives from the ICC that Kamran should not be in the team until further notice," the source said.

"Butt and Aamer will also not play in the World Cup," the source added.

Pakistan will have to announce its 30-member provisional World Cup squad by November 30.

The selectors today also ignored Kamran while picking his younger brother Adnan Akmal to join the Pakistan squad in Dubai for the forthcoming two-Test series against South Africa. The snub to Kamran came after he scored a half century in his last match for National Bank.

The selectors had also ignored him for the full series against South Africa although his performance in the one-day series against England was satisfactory.

The initial reason given for ignoring Kamran while announcing the one-day and Test squads against South Africa was that was he not 100 per cent fit.

But surprisingly the seasoned wicketkeeper-batsman was back in action in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy but ignored for the Tests against South Africa.

His replacement Zulqarnain Haider left PCB embarrassed when he fled from the team hotel in Dubai to land in London claiming he had got threats after refusing to cooperate with fixers during the one-day series against South Africa.

Kaneria, the most experienced Test bowler, was named in the squad for the two Tests against South Africa but stopped from boarding the flight to Dubai last week by the PCB.

"I have still not been given any reason for why they didn't allow me to go to Dubai," said Kaneria who is also active in domestic cricket.

There are also speculation that Mohammad Asif decided to withdraw his appeal against his provisional suspension imposed by the ICC last month because he was made aware of the evidence the ICC ACU has collected against the three suspended players including Butt and Aamer.

Sources said that it was because of the spot-fixing allegations against the players in the national team that PCB had been forced to accept terms and conditions of the ICC and agreed to take measures to improve its administration and anti-corruption measures.


His replacement Zulqarnain Haider left PCB embarrassed when he fled from the team hotel in Dubai to land in London claiming he had got threats after refusing to cooperate with fixers during the one-day series against South Africa.

Kaneria, the most experienced Test bowler, was named in the squad for the two Tests against South Africa but stopped from boarding the flight to Dubai last week by the PCB.

"I have still not been given any reason for why they didn't allow me to go to Dubai," said Kaneria who is also active in domestic cricket.

There are also speculation that Mohammad Asif decided to withdraw his appeal against his provisional suspension imposed by the ICC last month because he was made aware of the evidence the ICC ACU has collected against the three suspended players including Butt and Aamer.

Sources said that it was because of the spot-fixing allegations against the players in the national team that PCB had been forced to accept terms and conditions of the ICC and agreed to take measures to improve its administration and anti-corruption measures.

News Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/series-tournaments/icc-world-cup-2011/top-stories/PCB-told-to-omit-Kamran-Kaneria-from-2011-World-Cup-squad-Sources/articleshow/6897171.cms

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