Spot-fixing controversy
Pakistan withdraw trio from one-day series
By John Mehaffey
TAUNTON, England (Reuters) - Pakistan withdrew test captain Salman Butt and their two opening bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif from their one-day team on Thursday after intense pressure from the world and English governing bodies.
Police confiscated the three players' mobile phones after allegations in a British newspaper that they taken bribes to fix incidents in the final test against England at Lord's. The report said Amir and Asif had deliberately bowled no-balls by pre-arrangement.
Pakistan High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan told reporters in London that the trio had maintained their innocence but had asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to pull them out of the remainder of the tour because of the "mental torture" they had undergone.
However, a source in the Pakistan team told Reuters the ICC had advised PCB chairman Ijaz Butt to withdrew them while investigations were underway.
The English and Wales Cricket Board had also lobbied hard to get the PCB to drop the trio for a seven-match one-day series which starts with a Twenty20 match in Cardiff on Sunday.
The news that Butt, Amir and Asif had been dropped was announced by team manager Yawar Saeed before play began in a one-day 50 overs warmup match against Somerset on a sun-drenched day in Taunton.
"The T20 squad for two games will remain as it is here this morning, this means 13 people. For the one-day internationals subsequently we will be asking for replacements to make up the squad of 16 again," he told reporters.
The three players had to force their way through a media scrum into the Pakistan high commission and Hasan was besieged by questions when he emerged to confirm they would be taking no further part in the tour of England and Wales.
"They said they are extremely disturbed at what has happened," Hasan told reporters. "They mentioned that they are entirely innocent."
PAKISTAN SUPPORT
ECB chairman Giles Clarke said the board welcomed the decision.
"As chairman of the ICC's (International Cricket Council) Pakistan task team I look forward to working with Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board and everyone involved in taking forward cricket in Pakistan," Clarke said in a statement read to reporters.
While the news was breaking, a large crowd at the Somerset county cricket ground was enjoying the sun and a century from Pakistan opener Shahzaib Hasan, who scored 105 in his team's 264 in 47.3 overs.
Shahid Afridi, returning to action as the one-day captain, made only two but still led his team to victory by eight runs despite an unbeaten 122 by Zander de Bruyn.
"The boys are now trying to focus on the cricket," he told Sky Sports before play began. "We are here to play some good cricket."
A small but vociferous group of Pakistan supporters expressed their disappointment at missing the chance to see Mohammad Amir, in particular, but also criticised what they saw as the readiness of the British media to criticise their team.
"If they are guilty then they should be punished," Beenish Faridi told Reuters. "But these are allegations only and you can't blame the whole team. The whole team is suffering because of this."
Otherwise the crowd was largely oblivious to the off-field developments, although there was some loud cheers when Umar Gul bowled a no-ball late in the day.
(Editing by Sonia Oxley; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
(For more news visit Reuters India)
Pietersen may face disciplinary action over Twitter outburst despite apology
London, Sep 2(ANI): England batsman Kevin Pietersen could face disciplinary charges for tweeting about his omission despite his apology.
National selector Geoff Miller however said that the star batsman might escape punishment, as he has claimed that the post was a mistake.
"I'll talk to KP and if he wants to apologize or thinks there is a need to apologize then so be it - I will certainly explain to him what my feelings are," The Telegraph quoted Miller, as saying.
"It sounds like it might have been an accident, but not something you'd want to see and perhaps should be banned. I don't see where the word accident comes into it."
"Writing columns in newspapers or whatever leaves a player open to making questionable statements and I see this twitter in the same boat. I'm not for it I must admit," he added.
Pietersen had broken England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) rules on Tuesday when he reacted to being dropped from the ODI side by labeling the decision a "f*** up".
He hastily withdrew the posting on the controversial social networking site, but not before England bosses had been informed of his furious reaction.
The 30-year-old insisted that he never intended to make the message public, claiming that he had been trying to send a private message to a friend.
"It came out in a way I obviously didn't want it to come out. The Twitter thing was a direct message. As anyone who is on Twitter knows, you can send direct messages to your friends, or whoever's following you," Pietersen said.
"So, I must apologize that it ended up in the public domain and also apologize for the language I used. I would never, ever swear on Twitter when going out into the public domain, so this is a big apology, and now it's a case of looking forward what is going to be an exciting couple of weeks. It was just a mistake," he added. (ANI)
Players innocent until proven guilty - Pak envoy
http://www.cricinfo.com/england-v-pakistan-2010/content/story/475559.htmlSep 2, 2010
Players innocent until proven guilty - Pak envoy
News: The three Pakistan players who are at the centre of the spot-fixing controversy have been dropped for the limited-overs leg of the England tour
Sep 2, 2010
ACSU official meets Asif's former girlfriend
News: An ACSU official has met with Veena Malik, former girlfriend of fast bowler Mohammad Asif, as part of the body's ongoing inquiries into the spot-fixing scandal in which Asif is one of the central figures
Sep 2, 2010
Rob Steen: Match-fixing erodes the basis on which sport is founded, because it undermines uncertainty; which is why it is a bigger crime than the use of performance-enhancing drugs
Sep 1, 2010
Kit supplier severs ties with Amir
News: Pakistan's kit suppliers, BoomBoom, have suspended their relationship with Mohammad Amir and could also choose to sever ties with the team entirely
Sep 1, 2010
Shahid Afridi looks ahead to the cricket
News: Shahid Afridi, Pakistan's one-day captain, says his team is looking forward to getting back to cricket after four days of being in the headlines for the wrong reasons
Sep 1, 2010
Legalise sports betting in India, says Delhi court
News: Betting in cricket and other sports should be legalised in India, a Delhi court has said
Sep 1, 2010
Trio will face PCB on Thursday
News: The meeting in London between the three Pakistan cricketers at the centre of the spot-fixing scandal and senior administrative and diplomatic officials has been pushed back to Thursday
Sep 1, 2010
Watson blames ICC for Pakistan mess
News: Shane Watson has questioned whether the ICC really wants to eradicate match-fixing and spot-fixing from cricket due to fears the problem might run too deep
Sep 1, 2010
The Rough: Aka the world of the Pakistan supporter, where embarrassment, depression and denial thrive, and the truth lies in a corner, dead on arrival
Aug 31, 2010
No concerns over ACSU's work - Haroon Lorgat
News: Facing criticism about an inadequate anti-corruption protocol, the ICC has denied any laxity in the work of its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU)
Aug 31, 2010
Pakistan trio to meet with PCB chairman
News: Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, the three Pakistan players at the centre of spot-fixing allegations, will travel to London on Wednesday for meetings with PCB chairman Ijaz Butt
Aug 31, 2010
'Insufficient evidence' against Majeed, fears UK anti-corruption chief
News: The chairman of a UK commission set up to investigate the threat of gambling-related corruption in sport has told Cricinfo he believes there is insufficient evidence for police to press charges against Mazhar Majeed
Aug 31, 2010
Bookie approached Shane Watson twice
News: Shane Watson, who reported two approaches by an illegal bookmaker in England last year, said he was in "complete shock" at the allegations levelled at Pakistan
Aug 31, 2010
Gideon Haigh: It's no wonder there's match-fixing in the modern game, with its environment of easy money and pervasive maladministration
Aug 30, 2010
Pakistan to send investigators to UK
News: A team made up from Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and possibly an official from the sports ministry will be heading to England as part of Pakistan's probe into the spot-fixing allegations
Aug 30, 2010
Lorgat promises strong action against fixers
News: Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, has promised "prompt and decisive" action if any players are found guilty of spot fixing
Aug 30, 2010
ICC's anti-corruption code leaves scope for leniency
News: The ICC's anti-corruption code, which lays out a very specific procedure that must be followed in the case of spot or match-fixing, leaves scope for leniency depending on the situation
Aug 30, 2010
Imran wants harsh punishment as deterrent
News: Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan has said he is concerned about the long-term repercussions the match-fixing crisis could have on the country's cricketing establishment
Aug 30, 2010
Fixing allegations could taint Sydney win - Ponting
News: Australia captain Ricky Ponting has said his team's performance in last year's Sydney Test would be tarnished if the match-fixing allegations are true
Aug 30, 2010
Mazhar Majeed released on bail
News: Mazhar Majeed, the man at the centre of the spot-fixing scandal, has been released on bail without charge by Scotland Yard but will be questioned further at a later date
Andrew Miller and Nagraj Gollapudi
September 2, 2010
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| Related Links News : Trio will face PCB on Thursday News : Pakistan trio to meet with PCB chairman In Focus: Match-fixing Series/Tournaments: Pakistan tour of England Teams: Pakistan | |||
Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, the three players at the centre of the spot-fixing controversy, will play no part in the limited-overs leg of the England tour, after extensive talks between officials from the ICC and PCB led to the announcement that they had pulled out of the squad due to "mental torture".
While their absence will go some way towards defusing the controversy surrounding the series, Pakistan officials confirmed that the three players had not been suspended, and offered a public defence of the players, saying they were innocent until proven guilty. The defence came from Pakistan's high commissioner to the UK, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, who spoke to the media after meeting the players at his London office.
"The three players have said they are extremely disturbed with what has happened in the past one week, especially with regard to their alleged involvement in the crime," Hasan said. "They have mentioned that they are entirely innocent of the whole episode and shall defend their innocence as such. They further maintain that on account of the mental torture that has deeply affected them, they are not in the right frame of mind to play the remaining matches, therefore they have requested the PCB not to consider them until their names are cleared.
"They are innocent until proven guilty. They are under interrogation so they have to defend themselves. They are bright young men, one of them has just broken a world record, and we will go to a court of law to defend them."
Speaking later to the BBC, the commissioner appeared at one stage to support the notion that the players had been framed. Asked specifically if he believed this was the case, he responded: "Yes, I would say that. Yes." A spokesman for the News of the World later said the paper would "refuse to respond to such ludicrous allegations".
Cricinfo understands that the decision to omit the players only came about after extensive meetings between Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, and Haroon Lorgat, the chief executive of the ICC, which went on past midnight on Wednesday evening. The PCB's position had been one of reluctance to act before the investigations had run their course, but with the integrity of the sport at stake, Ijaz was finally persuaded to back down.
On a day of hectic developments, Cricinfo understands that officials from the ACSU met officials from Scotland Yard in relation to the ongoing investigation, and the three players will, in all probability, be recalled for further questioning in the next day or so, although no time has yet been set. In the meantime, a local legal firm has been appointed, with the PCB's legal advisor, Taffazul Rizvi, also in London assisting the case.
A source close to the investigation denied that any pressure had been applied from the Pakistan government, but added that the deputy attorney general of Pakistan was in London and had attended the meeting with the high commissioner. Later in the day, Lorgat and Ijaz Butt attended a separate meeting at the Pakistan High Commission.
The players, who arrived at the high commission in a car with blacked-out windows, were escorted by 10 police officers past a media scrum, involving up to 20 photographers and reporters, as they entered the building.
Earlier in the day team manager Yawar Saeed announced the players' exclusion from the squad in Taunton, where the Pakistan team is playing a warm-up game. "The T20 squad will remain what it is here this morning, i.e. 13 people," Saeed said. "When we play the one-day internationals we will be asking for replacements to make the squad up to 16."
The ECB, whose stance on the omission of the players has been clear from the start, estimates that an income of approximately £10 million hinges on the successful staging of this series and the chairman Giles Clarke said "he welcomed the decision". He said he looked forward to the series being playing "in the spirit" that matches between England and Pakistan are always played in.
"I look forward to working with Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, and Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, and everyone involved in Pakistani cricket in taking forward cricket in Pakistan so that a proper plan exists for the whole of Pakistani cricket," Clarke added.
Alan Hamer, the chief executive of Glamorgan, also welcomed the news of the trio's omission ahead of the county's hosting of the two Twenty20 matches on Sunday and Tuesday.
"This is definitely the right decision going forward into the series," Hamer told Cricinfo. "The week leading up to the matches has felt like a department store in the lead-up to Christmas, with no-one coming through the doors. It has been clear from our initial market research that many people have been waiting for clarity on the allegations before committing to buying tickets, so hopefully with this decision, the emphasis will now shift back to the cricket, and a contest between the past and present World Twenty20 champions."
Additional reporting by Osman Samiuddin.
Andrew Miller is UK editor of Cricinfo, Nagraj Gollapudi is an assistant editor.
Feeds: Andrew Miller--
Kapil urges Imran Khan to save Pakistan cricket
Kolkata, Sep 2 (IANS) Former India captain Kapil Dev Thursday called for severe punishment for Pakistan players found guilty in the spot-fixing controversy, and asked legendary Pakistan cricketer Imran Khan to take the initiative to save the game in his country.
'I appeal to Imran Khan to take charge of the current situation in Pakistan. Being the cleanest player, it's he who can save and look after Pakistan cricket,' Kapil Dev told newspersons on the sidelines of a programme here.
'None of us want the game in Pakistan to be finished, as this is one country that has produced some of the finest cricketers.'
Kapil said he felt sad for the Pakistan cricketers but the guilty need to be 'severely punished'.
'I do feel sorry for Pakistani cricketers and Pakistan cricket. But at the same time, the alleged ones should be severely punished if proved guilty,' said Kapil, the best Indian all-rounder ever.
He appealed to the International Cricket Council (ICC) to see to it that the game's image was not spoiled due to the activities of some 'negative people.'
'I'm not qualified to say ICC should ban players. But I appeal to the governing body to look after the game and make sure right people investigate the current issue. It should ensure that betting scandals carried out by a handful of negative people do not taint the wonderful game.'
Kapil also appealed youngsters to never bet on cricket.
--Indo-Asian News Sevice
Cricket should head in the right direction: Tendulkar
New Delhi: Senior India batsman Sachin Tendulkar on Tuesday said that people bringing disgrace to the game makes him sad as it leaves a bad impression on cricket, which should always head in the right direction.
"Yes. It doesn't leave a good impression about cricket and cricketers. It is something one would like to erase and make sure cricket heads in the right direction so that it helps cricket to grow across the globe," Tendulkar said.
World Cricket has recently being marred by a spot-fixing scandal after a British tabloid exposed a fixer predicting no-balls bowled by Pakistani bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir for taking cash on camera.
In an interview to 'Times Now' on the occasion of 'joy of giving', Tendulkar said his father has always been the most influential figure in his life.
"My biggest influence has been my father. He has left a huge impact on my life. As a child I learnt a lot just by observing him. The culture and values of my family have made me what I am," he said.
Tendulkar said the 1999 cricket World Cup, when his father Ramesh Tendulkar died, was the most difficult phase of his life but it was the strength of his family that helped him to ride over that emotional crisis.
"It was the most difficult moment of my life. I come back from England midway through the World Cup. But my mom, wife, brother, everybody told me that my father would have wanted me to go back and play and so I did," Tendulkar said.
Asked about his retirement plans, Tendulkar said he has not thought of it yet.
"I have not thought about it. There are no retirement plans, I will tell you when I decide," he said.
Tendulkar said cricket has always been the centrestage of his life right from the childhood days as he had always dreamt of playing for India.
"Right from school days, I had the love and passion for the game. Playing for India was the ultimate dream. Whatever happened in my life happened around cricket. It has always been at the centrestage. Cricket helped me to grow," he said.
Asked about how his mentor Ramakant Achrekar, who used to place a coin on his stumps while coaching, Tendulkar said those coins are as good as gold medals for him.
"Those coins are gold medals for me. It was a huge challenge for me to survive when he used to make me bat after playing the whole day.
He used to play coins on stumps and I had to survive with around 40-50 fielders around.
"Any one caught the ball and I was out, so I had to play carefully. At that time I was feeling tired but today when I look back I realise how those things made me what I am," he said.
IPL players were approached for spot-fixing, says Wassan
By Amlan Chakraborty
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian Premier League (IPL) cricketers had been approached about spot-fixing over the last two-and-a-half years, former India player Atul Wassan said on Tuesday.
Wassan told Reuters that a couple of IPL players, whom he would not name, confided to him that they had received approaches about spot-fixing which they had turned down.
Earlier on Tuesday, Australian all-rounder Shane Watson and wicketkeeper Brad Haddin told reporters in Sydney that an Indian bookmaker had approached them during last year's England tour.
The same bookmaker contacted the Australian pace duo of Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson during the tour, an Australian Associated Press (AAP) report said.
British police and the International Cricket Council (ICC) are investigating a newspaper report alleging that three Pakistan players were bribed to fix incidents during last week's fourth test against England in London.
Wassan declined to disclose details about the approaches to IPL players.
"I cannot specify but some players were approached and this is common knowledge here over the last two-and-a-half years," he said.
"This is not confined to IPL either and now you have Watson and Haddin also coming out, saying they too have been approached. This gives you an idea how much threat spot-fixing poses to the game."
Watson told the AAP he had initially mistaken the bookmaker for a fan.
"(He) was only too kind with his praise about how I'd been playing and he enjoyed the way I played and then it got down to a bit more: 'We'd like to take you out for drinks' and that sort of thing.
"I didn't think too much more of it until I found out a bit more information and that he was actually one of the illegal bookmakers."
Watson said the man had not gone into any details. "It wasn't an approach about a game or anything in that regard. We're very well educated about what we can and can't do. We know exactly where the line is."
Haddin said he was surprised when someone knocked on his door and asked if he could have a drink with him.
""I quickly rang (team manager) Steve Bernard and (ICC security manager) John Rhodes just to tell them something weird had just happened," Haddin said.
"They checked footage of who the person was and it was someone that they were well aware of. I'd never seen the person (before) or never heard from him or seen him since."
(Editing by Clare Fallon)
Pak cricketers at centre of illegal betting allegations are innocent: Hasan
Islamabad, Sep 2 (ANI): Pakistan's High Commissioner to Britain Wajid Shamsul Hasan said on Thursday that the three Pakistani cricketers at the centre of illegal betting allegations are innocent.
The Pakistan cricket team is in the midst of a betting scam, where fast bowlers Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Asif are alleged to have bowled pre-arranged no-balls in the Lord's Test against England.
Pakistan today dropped Test skipper Salman Butt, fast bowlers Asif and Aamir from the Twenty20 and one-day series against England under pressure from the ICC and England Cricket Board.
Hasan said that Butt and bowlers Amir and Asif had declared their innocence and vowed to fight the allegations.
"The three players have said that they are extremely disturbed by what has happened in the past week, especially in regard of their alleged involvement in the crime," The Nation quoted Hasan, as saying.
"They mentioned that they are entirely innocent in the whole episode and shall defend their innocence as such," he said.
Hasan said the trio had requested to be withdrawn from Pakistan's remaining fixtures on their tour of England due to the "mental torture" they had suffered since the scandal broke. (ANI)
ICC advised Pakistan to sideline trio - team source
KARACHI (Reuters) - Pakistan withdrew test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif from the tour of England on the advice of the International Cricket Council, a source in the team said on Thursday.
"The PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt was advised by the ICC to not consider the three players for selection until the investigations into alleged spot-fixing during the recent Test series against England are completed," the source told Reuters.
Pakistan High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan told reporters in London the trio had asked to be withdrawn from matches against England because of the 'mental torture' they had undergone.
The source said the Pakistan Cricket Board was told in clear terms that the ICC could not have the three playing when they were still under investigation and their presence could cause problems for the England and Wales Cricket Board and bring into question the credibility of the matches.
Pakistan is due to play two T20 matches and five one-day internationals against England from Sunday.
Former test captains Aamir Sohail and Zaheer Abbas backed the decision to drop the three.
"I think it is a sensible move because in their presence people would have serious doubts whether the results in the one-day series were fair," Sohail told Reuters.
Abbas said the decision to sideline the players would increase the credibility of the PCB and highlight their intent on having zero-tolerance on corruption in cricket.
"If the players are proved innocent, the PCB can say we played our role in this fight against corruption," he told Reuters.
The source said that the three players were also due to be questioned by Scotland Yard officers in London again on Thursday.
A PCB spokesman in Lahore said that the Pakistan management has so far not called for any replacements.
"If we get a request to send replacements for the one-day series they will be sent immediately. But I think the situation now is that we wait for the report of the investigations into the allegations to come out," said media manager Nadeem Sarwar.
He said there was no time frame given for the investigation to be completed.
A national selector said the replacements might be from outside the four standbys named for the one-day series.
The selectors while announcing the one-day squad earlier this month had named wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed, batsman Asad Shafiq, pace bowler Muhammad Irfan and left arm spinner Abdul Rehman as the standbys.
"We might have to pick someone from outside the standbys as we require an opener and two pace bowlers," said the selector, who declined to be named.
(Editing by Alan Baldwin)
To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
(For more news visit Reuters India)
Four Indian wrestlers test positive, out of CWG squad
New Delhi, Sep 2 (IANS) Four wrestlers, who were part of the Commonwealth Games squad, have tested positive and the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) Thursday provisionally suspended them.
This comes barely a week after the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) bailed out the weightlifters by giving an interest-free loan to the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) to pay off fines due to doping sanctions.
A dejected WFI president G.S. Mander said that three men's freestyle and one female wrestler tested positive during the Aug 8-9 trials and in an emergency meeting Thursday the WFI decided to provisionally suspend the four wrestlers.
The tainted wrestlers are Sumit (74kg), Mausam Khatri (96kg) and Rajiv Tomar (120kg) in men's freestyle and the lone women wrestler is Gursharanpreet Kaur (72kg).
The wrestlers tested positive for a banned substance called Methylhexanamine. The tests were part of routine random testing by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) in the run-up to the Oct 3-14 Games.
The suspended wrestlers can appeal against the result, but the WFI had to name their replacements since Thursday was the last date for official entries of participants.
'During the trials we tested all the probables and these four wrestlers tested positive. The Methylhexanamine is a stimulant and it is easily available at medical stores. Now we have sent them a notice and we will take necessary action against them,' Mander told IANS.
Mander said that in the last four years, since Sushil Kumar's bronze in Beijing Olympics, Indian wrestling has come a long way and WFI is trying its best to keep the sport dope-free.
'We have adopted a strict policy against doping. The WFI has conducted several out-of-competition testing this year and only these four have tested positive. We have come down hard on cheaters,' said Mander, after the emergency meeting of the selection committee at the K.D. Jadhav Wrestling Stadium.
The replacements are Narsingh Pancham Yadav (74kg), Anil Mann (96kg) and Praveen (120kg) in the freestyle section and Anshu Tomar (72kg) in the women's section. India named 21 wrestlers, including seven women, for the Commonwealth Games.
Pakistan match-fixing claims: three players to be questioned under caution
The three Pakistani cricketers at the centre of spot-fixing allegations will be questioned by police on Friday after their withdrawal from the squad to face England ensured that the Twenty20 and one-day series will begin as scheduled on Sunday.
Test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir will be interviewed under caution by detectives from Scotland Yard. The trio protested their innocence for the first time since the scandal broke, but are being viewed as suspects in the alleged conspiracy. They are not expected to be arrested however, and have agreed to attend the interviews voluntarily.
In a parallel development senior investigators from the International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption Security Unit (ACSU), led by its chairman Sir Ronnie Flanagan and chief operating officer Ravi Sawani, arrived in London to continue their investigation into the allegations. The ACSU team is understood to have met with police on Thursday afternoon.
If the ACSU believes there is a case to answer Butt, Asif and Amir could become the first players suspended under new ICC regulations intended to protect the integrity of the game.
Officers from Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency also visited Amir's family home in Punjab Province on Thursday.
Friday's police action comes after the players were forced to withdraw from the squad for the one-day series in the face of concerted pressure from the England and Wales Cricket Board and the ICC.
The official line from the Pakistan camp, announced by Pakistan's High Commissioner to London Wajid Shamsul Hasan, was that they had withdrawn because the "mental torture" of the last week meant they are not "in the right frame of mind" to play.
In fact their withdrawal was only secured after a round of intense negotiations on Wednesday night between the Pakistan Cricket Board chairman and the ECB and ICC.
Both the ECB and the ICC have insisted that the players could not feature in the one-day games if the series was to have any credibility, and they believed that had the support of the PCB following two days of talks in London.
On Wednesday evening however PCB president Ijaz Butt suggested that as the players had not been charged with any offence they would be available for selection this weekend.
While his comments may have been directed at his domestic audience, they sparked an angry response from ECB chairman Giles Clarke, who has staked a considerable amount of personal time and credibility on helping the rehabilitation of Pakistan cricket this summer.
Pakistan have been unable to host international cricket since a terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team last year, and Clarke helped facilitate the neutral series against Australia played in England earlier this summer. He also chairs the ICC's Pakistan Task Group.
Clarke is understood to have made it clear to Butt that the trio's participation would not be countenanced, a view endorsed by ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, who flew into London on Wednesday morning and joined Clarke in negotiations with the PCB.
Eventually their view prevailed and the Pakistan camp agreed to withdraw the players. To save face and offer the players an elegant exit however it was framed as a personal choice. One source described suggestions that the players had chosen to step down as "complete nonsense".
The players' withdrawal was announced by Hasan following a two-hour meeting with them on Thursday morning.
"The players said they are entirely innocent in the whole episode and shall defend their innocence as such," he said. "They maintain that on account of the mental torture which has deeply affected them they are not in the right frame of mind to play the remaining matches. Therefore, they have requested the PCB not to consider them for the remaining matches until their names are cleared."
Hasan went on to suggest that the players may have been set-up, but said they would co-operate with the police: "They are here, they are not running away." Shortly afterwards the players were ushered out of a side-door and into an adjoining building before being driven back to their Kensington hotel.
Once the players have spoken to the police the ACSU will be free to conduct their own interviews. Once they have been conducted the unit will consider whether to press for the players' suspension.
Last year the ICC introduced a new regulation giving them the power to suspend players pending the outcome of an investigation. It is intended to protect the integrity of the game, something the ICC say has been their priority from the outset of this episode.
If they are to be consistent then having pressed for the trio's withdrawal from the one-day series they would appear to have little choice but to suspend them before Pakistan's next series against South Africa, scheduled for Dubai in October.
Pakistan cricket corruption scandal takes new twist
Click to play
High Commissioner: 'Video could have been filmed after the no balls'
Police investigating alleged corruption involving Pakistani cricketers believe that video evidence crucial to the case is authentic, BBC Sport understands.
Pakistan's High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan claims News of the World video allegedly exposing the scandal may have been made after the incident.
Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir are currently being investigated by the police for alleged spot-fixing.
But police and cricket's governing body are treating the evidence as genuine.
The BBC also understands that the questions being posed by Hasan over the nature of the video evidence, after the Pakistan high commissioner had emerged from a Pakistan Cricket Board inquiry on Thursday, will not form part of the three cricketers' defence.
In response to Hasan's latest comments, the News of the World said it "refuses to respond to such ludicrous allegations".
 | HOW THE STORY HAS UNFOLDED Aug 28: Newspaper reports accuse some Pakistan players of cheating during Lord's Test against England; A man, 35, arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers; Police take statements from four players: Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asif & Kamran Akmal Aug 29: Pakistan suffer largest ever Test defeat; Mazhar Majeed confirmed as arrested man Aug 30: Pakistan players travel to Taunton for Thursday's one-day game against Somerset Aug 31: ICC confirms Akmal no longer part of the investigation; HMRC confirms three arrests in connection with betting allegations Sep 1: Butt, Amir and Asif head to London for investigation Sep 2: Pakistan team manager confirms Butt, Amir and Asif will play no further part in England tour; Pakistan high commissioner says he believes the players are innocent, and casts doubt over authenticity of video evidence |
Asif and Amir are alleged to have bowled three no-balls on purpose at pre-determined times to facilitate betting coups after a "middle-man" was reported to have accepted £150,000 in cash from an undercover reporter from the News of the World.
The newspaper published the claims last Sunday, days after the incidents were alleged to have taken place on the Thursday and Friday of the fourth Test at Lord's.
The cricketers Hasan referred to will now miss the rest of their country's tour of England , but the International Cricket Council has agreed to not to speak to them until the Metropolitan Police give permission.
Earlier on Thursday, Hasan insisted the players were "innocent".
"The players have voluntarily offered not to be included [in the tour]," he said. "They want to clear their names first."
Later Hasan emerged from the PCB inquiry in London to tell the BBC that the News of the World videotape of its meeting with cricket agent Mazhar Majeed could be inconclusive.
"You [the media] are jumping to conclusions, because no-balls are not taped like that," he said.
"We have not seen the videos. What the time [was when they were taken], what the date [was]... whether they were taken before or after the match. Do you have answers to the questions?"
When asked if the video could be fake, he replied: "You must know better because you are the media people."
Hours later Hasan told BBC Radio 5 live that "they [the players] are being brow-beaten for nothing by the media and they should be defended".
Pakistan team manager Yawar Saeed was keen to stress that the players in question had been left out and "not suspended" on Thursday, adding that they were all "extremely disturbed" by what has happened since the allegations were made on Sunday.
"They maintain that on account of the mental torture which has deeply affected them, they are not in the right frame of mind to play the remaining matches," he said.
Click to play
'Spot-fix three' will miss rest of tour - Saeed
The trio were originally questioned by police - along with wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal - at the team's hotel on Sunday, since when police said Akmal is no longer part of that investigation.
After it was announced that Butt, Amir and Asif will play no further part in England tour, England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Giles Clarke said that the decision was welcomed.
Pakistani cricket team in England in 2010
| Pakistan cricket team in England in 2010 | |||||
 |  | ||||
| Dates | 29 July – 22 September 2010 | ||||
| Captains | Salman Butt (Tests) Shahid Afridi (ODIs & T20Is) | Andrew Strauss (Tests and ODIs) Paul Collingwood (T20Is) | |||
| Test series | |||||
| Result | England won the 4-match series 3–1 | ||||
| Most runs | Umar Akmal (184)[1] | Jonathan Trott (404)[1] | |||
| Most wickets | Mohammad Amir (19)[2] | James Anderson (23)[2] | |||
| Player of the series | Mohammad Amir (Pak), Jonathan Trott (Eng) | ||||
| One Day International series | |||||
| Twenty20 series | |||||
The Pakistan cricket team are touring England from 29 July to 22 September 2010. The tour will consist of four Tests, two Twenty20s (T20) and five One Day Internationals (ODIs).
Contents[hide] |
[edit] Test Series
[edit] 1st Test
| 29 July – 2 August Scorecard | England  354 (104.1 overs) | v |  Pakistan182 (54 overs) | England won by 354 runs Trent Bridge, Nottingham Umpires: Asoka De Silva (SL) and Tony Hill (NZ) Man of the Match: James Anderson (Eng) | |
| Eoin Morgan 130 (216) Mohammad Asif 5/77 (27 overs) | Umar Gul 65* (46) James Anderson 5/54 (22 overs) | ||||
| 262/9d (75.3 overs) | 80 (29 overs) | ||||
| Matt Prior 102* (136) Umar Gul 3/41 (15 overs) | Danish Kaneria 16* (21) James Anderson 6/17 (15 overs) | ||||
| |||||
[edit] 2nd Test
| 6–10 August Scorecard | Pakistan 72 (39.3 overs) | v | England 251 (83.1 overs) | England won by 9 wickets Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham Umpires: Steve Davis (Aus) and Marais Erasmus (SA) Man of the Match: Graeme Swann (Eng) | |
| Umar Amin 23 (47) James Anderson 4/20 (14.3 overs) | Kevin Pietersen 80 (147) Saeed Ajmal 5/82 (26.1 overs) | ||||
| 296 (117.5 overs) | 118/1 (36.3 overs) | ||||
| Zulqarnain Haider 88 (200) Graeme Swann 6/65 (37 overs) | Jonathan Trott 53* (101) Mohammad Aamer 1/31 (11 overs) | ||||
| |||||
[edit] 3rd Test
| 18–22 August Scorecard | England 233 (62.3 overs) | v | Pakistan 308 (100.2 overs) | Pakistan won by 4 wickets The Oval, London Umpires: Steve Davis (Aus) and Tony Hill (NZ) Man of the Match: Mohammad Amir (Pak) | |
| Matt Prior 84* (127) Wahab Riaz 5/63 (18 overs) | Azhar Ali 92* (176) Graeme Swann 4/68 (27.2 overs) | ||||
| 222 (77 overs) | 148/6 (41.4 overs) | ||||
| Alastair Cook 110 (173) Mohammad Amir 5/52 (19 overs) | Salman Butt 48 (64) Graeme Swann 3/50 (18.4 overs) | ||||
| |||||
[edit] 4th Test
| 26–30 August Scorecard | England 446 (139.2 overs) | v | Pakistan 74 (33 overs) | England won by an innings and 225 runs Lord's Cricket Ground, London Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and Tony Hill (NZ) Man of the Match: Stuart Broad (Eng) | |
| Jonathan Trott 184 (383) Mohammad Amir 6/84 (28 overs) | Salman Butt 26 (58) Graeme Swann 4/12 (8 overs) | ||||
| 147 (36.5 overs) (f/o) | |||||
| Umar Akmal 79* (68) Graeme Swann 5/62 (13.5 overs) | |||||
| |||||
After being put into bat by Pakistan, England were reduced to 102 for 7 on the second day.[3] Jonathan Trott and Stuart Broad then put on a world record score for the eighth wicket with a partnership of 332.[4][5][6]
[edit] Betting allegations
On the third day of the 4th Test, British newspaper News of the World published a story with allegations that an agent loosely affiliated with some of the Pakistani players (later identified as Mazhar Majeed) had accepted a £150,000 ($232,665) bribe from undercover reporters for information that two Pakistani bowlers (Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir) would deliberately deliver no balls at specific points during the match, information which could be used by gamblers to make wagers with inside information (a process known as spot-fixing, compared with match fixing to predetermine a match result).[7]
In the video posted by News of the World, Majeed, counting out the bribe money, predicted that Amir would be Pakistan's bowler for the first over, and that the third ball of the over would be a no-ball delivery. Amir did bowl the first over, and on his third delivery from the over, bowled a no-ball delivery. Commentary described the delivery as a "massive overstep", a good half-metre beyond the popping crease.[8] Majeed also predicted that the sixth delivery of the tenth over would be a no-ball, and the ball, delivered by Asif, was also a no-ball delivery.
As a result of the allegations and video posted by News of the World, Scotland Yard announced during the evening that they had arrested Majeed on charges of suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers.[9] Two days later, after the Test match had completed, three more arrests were made (two unidentified men and an unidentified woman) on money laundering charges in connection with the allegations. [10]. Police also seized the cell phones of Asif, Amir, and Salman Butt as part of their investigations.
Yawar Saeed, the Pakistan team manager insisted after the conclusion of the test series that the T20 series and the ODI series will be played. He also refused to say that Butt should resign as Test captain.[11]
[edit] Twenty20 Series
Following the betting allegations Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and Salman Butt were eventually dropped from the Twenty20 and One day squad's at the players request. They had not been suspended, and that three playes would be called up to replace them.[12] This followed several days where the PCB refused to drop or suspend the players from the rest of the tour, even after England requested that the trio sit out the rest of the tour.[13]
[edit] 1st T20I
| 5 September | England | v | Pakistan | SWALEC Stadium, Cardiff |
| | ||||
[edit] 2nd T20I
| 7 September | England | v | Pakistan | SWALEC Stadium, Cardiff |
| | ||||
[edit] ODI Series
[edit] 1st ODI
| 10 September | England | v | Pakistan | Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street |
| | ||||
[edit] 2nd ODI
| 12 September | England | v | Pakistan | Headingley Stadium, Leeds |
| | ||||
[edit] 3rd ODI
| 17 September | England | v | Pakistan | The Oval, London |
| | ||||
[edit] 4th ODI
| 20 September | England | v | Pakistan | Lord's Cricket Ground, London |
| | ||||
[edit] 5th ODI
| 22 September | England | v | Pakistan | Rose Bowl, Southampton |
| | ||||
[edit] Tour matches
[edit] First-class: Worcestershire vs Pakistanis
| 13–14 August Scorecard | Pakistanis 112/2 (28.1 overs) | v | Worcestershire | Match drawn New Road, Worcester Umpires: Richard Kettleborough and Steve Malone | |
| Mohammad Yousuf 40* (54) Chris Russell 1/43 (6 overs) | |||||
| |||||
[edit] List A: Somerset vs Pakistanis
| 2 September 2010 Scorecard | Pakistanis 264 (47.3 overs) | v | Somerset 256/9 (50.0 overs) | Pakistan won by 8 runs County Ground, Taunton Umpires: Keith Coburn and Richard Illingworth |
| Shahzaib Hasan 105 (120) Lewis Gregory 4/49 (10 overs) | Z de Bruyn 122 * (142) Saeed Ajmal 3/40 (10 overs) | |||
| ||||
[edit] Media coverage
[edit] Television
- Sky Sports: United Kingdom and Ireland
- ESPN Star: India
- SuperSport: South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe
- Fox Sports: Australia
- Sky Network Television: New Zealand
- Geo Super: Pakistan
- ATN CBN: Canada
- Arab Digital Distribution: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates
- Cricket Plus: United States
[edit] Internet
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Pakistan in England Test Series, 2010 / Most runs". Cricinfo.com. ESPN. 29 August 2010. http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/batting/most_runs_career.html?id=5506;type=series. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ a b "Pakistan in England Test Series, 2010 / Most wickets". Cricinfo.com. ESPN. 29 August 2010. http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/bowling/most_wickets_career.html?id=5506;type=series. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ "npower Test Match Series: England v Pakistan Scorecard". BBC Sport. 16 July 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/latest_scorecard/default.stm. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ^ "Pakistan collapse to 74 all out against rampant England". uk.reuters. 28 August 2010. http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLDE67R03F20100828?feedType=RSS&feedName=cricketNews. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ^ "Trott, Broad in world-record partnership". theage.com (Melbourne). 29 August 2010. http://www.theage.com.au/sport/cricket/trott-broad-in-worldrecord-partnership-20100828-13wxa.html?from=age_sb. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ^ "Broad's dream Test continues". thesun.co.uk. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/cricket/3115704/Jonathan-Trott-and-Stuart-Broad-plough-on.html. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ^ Marks, Vic (29 August 2010). "Pakistan embroiled in no-ball betting scandal against England". guardian.co.uk (London: Guardian News and Media). http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2010/aug/29/pakistan-cricket-betting-allegations. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ Cricinfo staff (28 August 2010). "Lord's Test at centre of fixing allegations". Cricinfo.com (ESPN). http://www.cricinfo.com/england-v-pakistan-2010/content/current/story/474890.html. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ "Arrest over Pakistan-England Test cricket 'betting scam'". BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation). 29 August 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11122388. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ http://www.cricinfo.com/england-v-pakistan-2010/content/current/story/475263.html
- ^ "Pakistan manager Saeed expects England tour to continue". BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation). 29 August 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/8953417.stm. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ "Pakistan trio out of England tour". BBC Sport. 1 September 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/8953417.stm. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
- ^ "England 'want Pakistan bet probe players banned'". BBC Sport. 31 August 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/8957755.stm. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
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Match fixing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaThis article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (January 2008) In organized sports, match fixing, game fixing, race fixing, or sports fixing occurs as a match is played to a completely or partially pre-determined result, violating the rules of the game and often the law. Where the sporting competition in question is a race then the incident is referred to as race fixing. Games that are deliberately lost are sometimes called thrown games. When a team intentionally loses a game, or does not score as high as it can, to obtain a perceived future competitive advantage (for instance, earning a high draft pick) rather than gamblers being involved, the team is often said to have tanked the game instead of having thrown it. In pool hustling, tanking is known as dumping.
Thrown games, when motivated by gambling, require contacts (and normally money transfers) between gamblers, players, team officials, and/or referees. These contacts and transfer can sometimes be found, and lead to prosecution, by law or by the sports league(s). In contrast, tanking is internal to the team and very hard to prove. Often, substitutions made by the coach designed to deliberately increase the team's chances of losing (frequently by having one or more key players sit out, often using minimal or phantom injuries as a public excuse for doing this), rather than ordering the players actually on the field to intentionally underperform, were cited as the main factor in cases where tanking has been alleged.
[edit] Motivations and causes
The major motivations behind match fixing are gambling and future team advantage.
[edit] Agreements with gamblers
There may be financial gain through agreements with gamblers.
[edit] Getting a better draft pick
In the NHL, NBA and Australian Football League, teams near the bottom of the standings have sometimes been accused of tanking games at the end of the season to finish with the worst record in the league — thereby gaining the first draft pick. (For example, there were accusations that in 1993 the Ottawa Senators intentionally tanked games in order to draft Alexandre Daigle.) To deter this behavior, these leagues now use a draft lottery which does not guarantee the first pick to the team at the bottom of the standings. Other leagues such as the Australian Football League and the NFL do not make use of a lottery, which leads to suspicions of match fixing, especially since top draft picks can have top careers. Like the NFL, MLB does not conduct a draft lottery, but credible allegations of tanking in the MLB are uncommon due to the historically weak correlation between draft order and major-league success.
[edit] Better playoff chances
In the NBA (but not in the NHL, which re-seeds teams after the first playoff round), there have also been allegations of teams tanking games in order to finish in sixth rather than fifth place in the conference standings, thus enabling the team in question to evade a possible playoff match with the conference's top seed until the final round of playoffs in that conference (for more details see single-elimination tournament). For example, the 2006 Los Angeles Clippers allegedly tanked late season games so they could finish with the 6th seed and play the 8th-ranked team in the league's Western Conference, the Denver Nuggets, who were the 3rd seed by way of winning their division. Another quirk in the league's playoff system gave the Clippers even more of an incentive to tank. The NBA is the only one of the four major professional sports leagues of the United States in which home advantage in the playoffs is based strictly on regular-season record without regard to seeding. If the Clippers had finished with the 5th seed in the West, they would have had to face the Dallas Mavericks, who despite being the 4th seed had the second-best record in the conference, which would give the Mavericks home advantage. However, the Clippers would have home advantage in a series against the Nuggets by virtue of a better overall record. If tanking was indeed their strategy, it worked, as the Clippers easily won their first round series. Following the 2006 season, the NBA changed its playoff format so that the best second-place team in each conference would be able to obtain up to the #2 seed should it have the second-best conference record.[1] On occasion, an NFL team has also been accused of throwing its final regular-season game in an attempt to "choose" its possible opponent in the subsequent playoffs. For example, in the closing game of the 2004 season, the Indianapolis Colts faced the Denver Broncos. With a win, the Broncos would advance to the playoffs as a wild card and face the Colts as their first round playoff opponent. It would seem the Colts had little incentive to win as their loss would ensure that they would play a team they dominated in the 2003 Wild Card game. Sure enough, the Colts rested their starters, lost the game, and went on to blow out the Broncos the following week in the playoffs.
Perhaps the most notable example of this was when the San Francisco 49ers, who had clinched a playoff berth, lost their regular-season finale in 1988 to the Los Angeles Rams, thereby keeping the New York Giants (who had defeated the 49ers in the playoffs in both 1985 and 1986, also injuring 49er quarterback Joe Montana in the latter year's game) from qualifying for the postseason; after the game, Giants quarterback Phil Simms angrily accused the 49ers of "laying down like dogs."
A more recent example of possible tanking occurred in the ice hockey competition at the 2006 Winter Olympics. In Pool B, Sweden was to face Slovakia in the last pool match for both teams. Sweden coach Bengt-Åke Gustafsson publicly contemplated tanking against Slovakia, knowing that if his team won, their quarterfinal opponent would either be Canada, the 2002 gold medalists, or the Czech Republic, 1998 gold medalists. Gustafsson would tell Swedish television "One is cholera, the other the plague." Sweden lost the match 3-0; the most obvious sign of tanking was when Sweden had a five-on-three power play with five NHL stars—Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin, Daniel Alfredsson, Nicklas Lidstrom, and Fredrik Modin—on the ice, and failed to put a shot on goal. (Sports Illustrated writer Michael Farber would say about this particular powerplay, "If the Swedes had passed the puck any more, their next opponent would have been the Washington Generals.") If he was seeking to tank, Gustafsson got his wish; Sweden would face a much less formidable quarterfinal opponent in Switzerland. Canada would lose to Russia in a quarterfinal in the opposite bracket, while Sweden went on to win the gold medal, defeating the Czechs in the semifinals.[2]
[edit] More favorable schedule next year
NFL teams have been accused of throwing games in order to obtain a more favorable schedule the following season; this was especially true between 1977 and 1993, when a team finishing last in a five-team division would get to play five of its eight non-division matches the next season against other last-place teams.
[edit] Match fixing by referees
In addition to the match fixing that is committed by players, coaches and/or team officials, it is not unheard of to have results manipulated by corrupt referees. Since 2004, separate scandals have erupted in prominent sports leagues in Portugal,[3] Germany (Bundesliga scandal), Brazil (Brazilian football match-fixing scandal) and the United States (see Tim Donaghy), all of which concerned referees who fixed matches for gamblers. Many sports writers have speculated that in leagues with high player salaries, it is far more likely for a referee to become corrupt since their pay in such competitions is usually much less than that of the players.
[edit] Match fixing to a draw or a fixed score
Match fixing does not necessarily involve deliberately losing a match. Occasionally, teams have been accused of deliberately playing to a draw or a fixed score where this ensures some mutual benefit (e.g. both teams advancing to the next stage of a competition.) One of the earliest examples of this sort of match fixing in the modern era occurred in 1898 when Stoke City and Burnley intentionally drew in that year's final "test match" so as to ensure they were both in the First Division the next season. In response, the Football League expanded the divisions to 18 teams that year, thus permitting the intended victims of the fix (Newcastle United and Blackburn Rovers) to remain in the First Division. The "test match" system was abandoned and replaced with automatic relegation.
A more recent example occurred in the 1982 FIFA World Cup, West Germany played Austria in the last match of group B. A West German victory by 1 or 2 goals would result in both teams advancing; any less and Germany was out; any more and Austria was out (and replaced by Algeria, who had just beaten Chile). West Germany attacked hard and scored after 10 minutes. Afterwards, the players then proceeded to just kick the ball around aimlessly for the remainder of the match. Algerian supporters were so angered that they waved banknotes at the players, while a German fan burned his German flag in disgust.[4] By the second half, the ARD commentator Eberhard Stanjek refused any further comment on the game, while the Austrian television commentator Robert Seeger advised viewers to switch off their sets. As a result, FIFA changed its tournament scheduling for subsequent World Cups so that the final pair of matches in each group are played simultaneously.
[edit] Abuse of tie-breaking rules
On several occasions, "creative" use of tie-breaking rules have allegedly led teams to play less than their best.
An example occurred in the 2004 European Football Championship. Because unlike FIFA, UEFA takes "head-to-head" play into consideration before overall goal difference when ranking teams level on points, a situation arose in Group C where Sweden and Denmark played to a 2-2 draw, which was a sufficiently high scoreline to eliminate Italy (which had lower-scoring draws with the Swedes and Danes) regardless of Italy's result with already-eliminated Bulgaria. Although Italy beat Bulgaria by only one goal and would hypothetically have been eliminated using the FIFA tie-breaker too, some Italian fans bitterly contended that the FIFA tie-breaker would have motivated their team to play harder and deterred their Scandinavian rivals from, in their view, at the very least half-heartedly playing out the match after the score became 2-2.
But the FIFA tie-breaker, or any goal-differential scheme, can cause problems, too. There have been incidents (especially in basketball) where players on a favored team have won the game but deliberately ensured the quoted point spread was not covered (see point shaving). Conversely, there are cases where a team not only lost (which might be honest) but lost by some large amount, perhaps to ensure a point spread was covered, or to grant some non-gambling related favor to the victor. Perhaps the most famous alleged example was the match between Argentina and Peru in the 1978 FIFA World Cup. Argentina needed a four goal victory to advance over Brazil, an enormous margin at this level of competition, especially since Argentina had a weak offense (6 goals in 5 games) and Peru a stout defence (6 goals allowed in 5 games). Yet somehow, Argentina won 6-0. Much was made over the fact that the Peruvian goalkeeper was born in Argentina, and Peru was dependent on Argentinian grain shipments, but nothing was ever proven.
Although the Denmark-Sweden game above led to calls for UEFA to adopt FIFA's tiebreaking formula for future tournaments, it is not clear if this solves the problem - the Argentina-Peru game shows a possible abuse of the FIFA tie-breaker. Proponents of the UEFA tie-breaker argue that it reduces the value of blow-outs, whether these be the result of a much stronger team running up the score or an already-eliminated side allowing an unusually large number of goals. Perhaps the most infamous incident occurred in December 1983 when Spain, needing to win by eleven goals to qualify for the 1984 European Football Championship ahead of the Netherlands, defeated Malta by a score of 12-1 on the strength of nine second half goals. Especially in international football, such lopsided results are seen as unsavoury, even if they are honest. If anything, these incidents serves as evidence that the FIFA tie-breaker can cause incentives to perpetrate a fix in some circumstances, the UEFA tie-breaker in others.
[edit] Individual performance in team sports
Bookmakers in the early 21st century accept bets on a far wider range of sports-related propositions than ever before. Thus, a gambling-motivated fix might not necessarily involve any direct attempt to influence the outright result, especially in team sports where such a fix would require the co-operation (and prerequsitely, the knowledge) of many people, and/or perhaps would be more likely to arouse suspicion. Fixing the result of a more particular proposition might be seen as less likely to be noticed - for example, scandalized former National Basketball Association referee Tim Donaghy has been alleged to have perpetrated some of his fixes by calling games in such a manner as to ensure more points than expected were scored by both teams, thus affecting "over-under" bets on the games whilst also ensuring that Donaghy at least did not look to be outright biased. Also, bets are increasingly being taken on individual performances in team sporting events, although it is currently unlikely that enough is bet on an average player to allow someone to place a substantial wager on them without being noticed.
One such attempt was described by retired footballer Matthew Le Tissier, who in 2009 admitted that while he was playing with Southampton FC back in 1995 he tried (and failed) to kick the ball out of play right after the kick-off of an English Premier League match against Wimbledon FC so that a group of associates would collect on a wager made on an early throw-in.[5]
[edit] Effect of non-gambling-motivated fixing on wagering
Whenever any serious motivation for teams to manipulate results becomes apparent to the general public, there can be a corresponding effect on betting markets as honest gamblers speculate in good faith as to the chance such a fix might be attempted. Some bettors might choose to avoid wagering on such a fixture while others will be motivated to wager on it, or alter the bet they would otherwise place. Such actions will invariably affect odds and point spreads even if there is no contact whatsoever between teams and the relevant gambling interests. The rise of betting exchanges has allowed such speculation to play out in real time. For example, the average payout on bets backing the 2004 2-2 result between Sweden and Denmark were much lower than would normally be expected, as heavy betting on that result depressed the odds despite the fact that both teams vehemently denied they would intentionally attempt to manipulate the result. There has never been any evidence produced to suggest that the betting patterns witnessed before that match was anything more than honest speculation from honest bettors.
[edit] History
Since gambling pre-dates recorded history it comes as little surprise that evidence of match fixing is found throughout recorded history. The Ancient Olympics were almost constantly dealing with allegations of athletes accepting bribes to lose a competition and city-states which often tried to manipulate the outcome with large amounts of money. These activities went on despite the oath each athlete took to protect the integrity of the events and the severe punishment sometimes inflicted on those who were caught. Chariot racing was also dogged by race fixing throughout its history.
By the end of the 19th century gambling was illegal in most jurisdictions, but that did not stop its widespread practice. Boxing soon became rife with fighters "taking a dive" - probably because boxing is an individual sport which makes its matches much easier to fix without getting caught. Baseball also became plagued by match fixing despite efforts by the National League to stop gambling at its games. Matters finally came to a head in 1919 when eight members of the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series (see Black Sox Scandal). In an effort to restore confidence, Major League Baseball established the office of the Baseball Commissioner, and one of Kenesaw Mountain Landis's first acts was to ban all involved players for life. Strict rules prohibiting gambling persist to this day (See Pete Rose).
[edit] Japan
Yaochō (八百長 やおちょう) is a Japanese word meaning a cheating activity which is committed at places where a match, fight, game, competition, or other contest, is held, where the winner and loser are decided in advance by agreement of the competitors or related people. It is believed that the word "Yaocho" came from the name ("Chobei") of the owner of a vegetable stand (yaoya) during the Meiji period. Created from the first syllable of "Yaoya" and "chobei", the word "yaocho" was created for a nickname of Chobei. Chobei had a friend called "Isenoumi Godayu" (7th Isenoumi stablemaster) with whom he played the game Igo, who had once been a Sumo wrestler "Kashiwado Sogoro" (former shikona was "Kyonosato") and now was a "Toshiyori" (a stablemaster of Sumo). Although Chobei was a better Igo player than Isenoumi, he sometimes lost games on purpose to please Isenoumi, so that Isenoumi would continue to buy merchandise from his shop. Afterward, once people knew of his cheating, they started to use "Yaocho" as a word meaning any decision to win/lose a match in advance by negotiation etc. with the expectation of secondary profit, even though the match seems to be held seriously and fairly.
Economists, using statistical analysis, have shown very strong evidence of match fixing in Sumo wrestling.[6]
[edit] Match fixing and gambling today
Influenced by baseball's experiences, the NFL and NBA have followed MLB's lead and adopted a hard line against gambling on its games, especially by those directly involved in the league. The NCAA takes an even harder line:
- It prohibits athletes, coaches, and athletics administrators at member schools, plus staff of member conferences, from gambling on any sport in which the NCAA holds a championship or in Division I FBS football (in which the NCAA does not sponsor an official championship).[7]
- It also prohibits venues in championship play from carrying advertising for any form of gambling, including state lotteries.[8]
Each of these organizations was, and may still be influenced by fears that their games could come under the influence of gamblers in the absence of these tough measures. Critics of such hard line measures note that in spite of such policies, such influence nonetheless does occur.
In Britain the authorities in both government and sport have taken a softer line on gambling. Following decades of relatively lax, intermittent and ineffective enforcement of laws prohibiting gambling, sports betting was finally legalized and regulated in the 1960s. Organizations such as The Football Association seem to have taken the stance that gambling on their events is inevitable — unlike the American leagues, The FA only prohibits betting on a match by those directly involved in the game in question. Footballers (or coaches, managers, etc.) are not prohibited from betting on matches that do not involve their own team, though that is frowned on in many circles.
In 1964, the great British football betting scandal of the 1960s was uncovered. A betting ring organized by Jimmy Gauld and involving several Football League players had been fixing matches. The most famous incident involved three Sheffield Wednesday players, including two England international players, that were subsequently banned from football for life and imprisoned after it was discovered they had bet against their team winning in a match against Ipswich Town. A similar scandal had occurred in 1915.
The integrity of horse racing remains an ongoing concern since gambling is an integral part of this sport. Recent allegations of race fixing have centered around the recently-formed betting exchanges which unlike traditional bookmakers allow punters to lay an outcome (that is, to bet against a particular runner). Leading exchange Betfair has responded to the allegations by signing Memorandums of Understanding with the Jockey Club, The FA, the International Cricket Council, the Association of Tennis Professionals and other sporting authorities. These memoranda of understanding are evidence of the vast difference between British and American attitudes[citation needed] — as of 2008 it would be almost unthinkable for an American sports league to sign such an agreement with a bookmaker or betting exchange.[citation needed]
It should be noted that while British football has never been rocked by match fixing allegations on the scale of the Black Sox scandal (the aforementioned incidents involved league matches, not major championships), football match-fixing has become a serious problem in parts of Continental Europe.
Cricket has been scandalized by several gambling and match fixing allegations in recent years, particularly the case of Hansie Cronje in the late 1990s, culminating in the World Cup investigations of 2007. These highly publicised enquiries were prompted by the surprise defeat of Pakistan in the Cup by Ireland and the subsequent murder investigation into the sudden death, straight after the match, of Pakistan's head coach Bob Woolmer. Cricket match-fixing and the fallout of the Woolmer case have since become the subject of crime/thriller literature in the novel Raffles and the Match-Fixing Syndicate (2008) by Adam Corres. According to the head of the ICC's anti-corruption unit Paul Condon, cricket is the most bet on sport in the world, and fixing is found at every level of the sport and is a significant problem.[9]
The high salaries of some of today's professional athletes likely serves to insulate their leagues from player-instigated match fixing. In the NCAA and in leagues where the salaries are comparatively less (or, in the case of the amateur NCAA, zero), match fixing by players remains a serious concern.
[edit] Match fixing incidents
- In 1919, gamblers bribed several members of the Chicago White Sox to throw the World Series. This became known as the Black Sox Scandal and was recounted in book and movie form as Eight Men Out.
- In 1951, District Attorney Frank Hogan indicted college basketball players for point shaving from four New York schools, including CCNY, Manhattan College, New York University and Long Island University.
- In 1978, mobsters connected with the New York Lucchese crime family, among them Henry Hill and Jimmy Burke, organized a point shaving scheme with key members of the Boston College basketball team.
- On August 24, 1989, former baseball player Pete Rose voluntarily accepted a permanent ban from Major League Baseball for allegedly betting on Cincinnati Reds games while managing the team. Rose would later confirm the truth of the allegations in his 2004 autobiography, My Prison Without Bars.
- In 1994, a comprehensive point shaving scheme organized by campus bookmaker Benny Silman and involving players from the Arizona State University men's basketball team was uncovered with the assistance of Las Vegas bookmakers, who grew suspicious over repeated large wagers being made against Arizona State.[10]
- In February 1999 a Malaysian-based betting syndicate was caught attempting to install a remote-control device to sabotage the floodlights at English Premier League team Charlton Athletic's ground with the aid of a corrupt security officer. If the match had been abandoned after half-time, then the result and bets would have stood. Subsequent investigations showed that the gang had been responsible for previously unsuspected "floodlight failures" at West Ham's ground in November 1997, and again a month later at Crystal Palace's ground during a home match of Palace's groundsharing tenant Wimbledon.[11][12]
- In 2000 the Delhi police intercepted a conversation between a blacklisted bookie and the South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje in which they learnt that Cronje accepted money to throw matches. The South African government refused to allow any of its players to face the Indian investigation unit, which opened up a can of worms. A court of inquiry was set up and Cronje admitted to throwing matches. He was immediately banned from all cricket. He also named Saleem Malik (Pakistan), Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja (India). Jadeja was banned for 4 years. They too were banned from all cricket. As a kingpin, Cronje exposed the dark side of betting, however with his untimely death in 2002 most of his sources also have escaped law enforcement agencies. Two South African cricketers, Herschelle Gibbs and Nicky Boje, are also wanted by the Delhi police for their role in the match fixing saga. A few years before in 1998, Australian players Mark Waugh and Shane Warne were fined for revealing information about the 'weather' to a bookmaker.
- The Italian Football Federation said in October 2000 it had found eight players guilty of match-fixing. Three were from Serie A side Atalanta and the other five played for Serie B side Pistoiese. The players were Giacomo Banchelli, Cristiano Doni and Sebastiano Siviglia (all Atalanta) and Alfredo Aglietti, Massimiliano Allegri, Daniele Amerini, Gianluca Lillo and Girolamo Bizzarri (all Pistoiese). The charges related to an Italian Cup first round tie between the two sides in Bergamo on August 20, 2000 which ended 1-1. Atalanta scored at the end of the first half and Pistoiese equalised three minutes from full time. Atalanta qualified for the second round. Snai, which organises betting on Italian football, said later it had registered suspiciously heavy betting on the result and many of the bets were for a 1-0 halftime score and a fulltime score of 1-1.
- In June 2004 in South Africa, thirty-three people (including nineteen referees, club officials, a match commissioner and an official of the South African Football Association) were arrested on match-fixing charges.
- In the summer of 2004, Betfair provided evidence of race fixing to City of London Police that led to the arrest of jockey Kieren Fallon and fifteen others on race fixing charges. On 7 December 2007 the judge in the case ordered the jury to find Fallon not guilty on all charges.
- In late 2004, the game between Panionios and Dinamo Tbilisi in the 2004-05 UEFA Cup was suspected of being fixed after British bookmakers detected an unusually high number of half-time bets for a 5-2 win for the Greek side, which was trailing 0-1. As the final result ended up being 5-2, suspicions of fixing quickly emerged, but were quickly denied by both clubs, although UEFA started an investigation.
- 2005 Bundesliga scandal: In January 2005, the German Football Association (DFB) and German prosecutors launched separate probes into charges that referee Robert Hoyzer bet on and fixed several matches that he worked, including a German Cup tie. Hoyzer later admitted to the allegations; it has been reported that he was involved with Croat gambling syndicates. He also implicated other referees and players in the match fixing scheme. The first arrests in the Hoyzer investigation were made on January 28 in Berlin, and Hoyzer himself was arrested on February 12 after new evidence apparently emerged to suggest that he had been involved in fixing more matches than he had admitted to. Hoyzer has been banned for life from football by the DFB. On March 10, a second referee, Dominik Marks, was arrested after being implicated in the scheme by Hoyzer. Still later (March 24), it was reported that Hoyzer had told investigators that the gambling ring he was involved with had access to UEFA's referee assignments for international matches and Champions League and UEFA Cup fixtures several days before UEFA publicly announced them. Ultimately, Hoyzer was sentenced to serve 2 years and 5 months in prison.
- In July 2005, Italian Serie B champions Genoa was arbitrarily placed last in the division, and therefore condemned to relegation in Serie C1, after it was revealed that they bribed their opponents in the final match of the season, Venezia to throw the match. Genoa won the match 3-2 and had apparently secured promotion to Serie A.
- Brazilian football match-fixing scandal: In September 2005, a Brazilian magazine revealed that two football referees, Edílson Pereira de Carvalho (a member of FIFA's referee staff) and Paulo José Danelon, had accepted bribes to fix matches. Soon afterwards, sport authorities ordered the replaying of 11 matches in the country's top competition, the Campeonato Brasileiro, that had been worked by Edílson. Both referees have been banned for life from football and face possible criminal charges. Brazilian supporters have taken to shout "Edílson" at a referee who they consider to have made a bad call against their team, in a reference to the scandal.
- 2006 Serie A scandal ("Calciopoli"): In May 2006, perhaps the largest match fixing scandal in the history of Italian Serie A football was uncovered by Italian Police, implicating league champions Juventus, and powerhouses AC Milan, Fiorentina, and Lazio. Teams were suspected of rigging games by selecting favorable referees, and even superstar Italian World Cup team goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was charged with betting on football games. [2] Initially, Juventus were stripped of their titles in 2004-05 and 2005–06, all four clubs were barred from European club competition in 2006-07, and all except Milan were forcibly relegated to Serie B.[13] After all four clubs appealed, only Juventus remained relegated due while Milan were allowed to enter the third qualifying round of the Champions League (they went on to win the tournament.) The stripping of Juventus' titles stood.[14]`
- 2007 NBA Referee Scandal: In July 2007 it was revealed that National Basketball Association referee Tim Donaghy had gambled on 10 to 15 games, including games which he refereed. The matter is currently being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the NBA.
- 2008 The Fix: Book by Declan Hill alleges that in the 2006 World Cup, the group game between Ghana and Italy, the round-of-16 game between Ghana and Brazil, and the Italy-Ukraine quarter-final were all fixed by Asian gambling syndicates to whom the final scores were known in advance[15]. The German Football Federation (DFB) and German Football League (DFL) looked into claims made in a Der Spiegel[16] interview with Hill that two Bundesliga matches were fixed by William Bee Wah Lim a fugitive with a 2004 conviction for match-fixing.[17]
- 2008: On October 1, it was reported that a Spanish judge who headed an investigation against Russian Mafia figures uncovered information alleging that the mobsters may have attempted to fix the 2007–08 UEFA Cup semi-final between eventual champion Zenit St. Petersburg and Bayern Munich. Both clubs denied any knowledge of the alleged scheme.[18] Prosecutors in the German state of Bavaria, home to Bayern, later announced that they did not have enough evidence to justify a full investigation.[19]
- 2008: On October 4, suspicious online betting on the game between Norwich City and Derby County led some to question the validity of the Football League match. Gamblers in Asia were said to have placed a large amount of money down during halftime, which raised concerns over the outcome.[20] The inquiry by The Football Association found no evidence that would suggest the match was fixed.[21] Derby County ended up winning the match 2-1.
- 2009: On May 6, a federal grand jury in Detroit indicted six former University of Toledo athletes—three each from the school's football and basketball programs—on charges of conspiracy to commit sports bribery in relation to their alleged involvement in a point shaving scheme that ran from 2003 through 2006. It is believed to be the first major U.S. gambling case involving two sports at the same college.[22]
- In November 2009, German police arrested 17 people on suspicion of fixing at least 200 soccer matches in 9 countries.[23] Among the suspected games were those from the top leagues of Austria, Bosnia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovenia, and Turkey, and games from the second highest leagues of Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland. Three contests from the Champions League were under investigation, and 12 from the Europa League.
- In 2010, several professional Starcraft players were suspected of being involved in illegal match fixing, with two people arrested and about seven gamers investigated, with two renowned gamers, Ma Jae-Yoon and By.CrocuS were confirmed as working as a broker between the betters and the gamers.[24]
- August 2010 Cricket: England vs Pakistan- England by the 4th day of their test match, is up winning against Pakistan by an inning and 225 runs, making this Pakistan's worst loss in Cricket in 58 years. It is discovered, however, that the team was subject to match fixing causing a halt of the game and controversy to who is responsible and who is not. [25]
[edit] Outside of sports
- The 1980s TV game show Starcade had a policy of matching contestants up based on their gaming abilities, which means that after potential contestants had played a number of video games for a certain amount of time, they would be paired up by their total scores. Although it was written in the rules that intentionally doing badly in order to be paired up to someone who really wasn't that good was grounds for disqualification, many contestants did it anyway, and were stripped of any awarded prizes and disqualified.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/article.jsp?content=20060802_150747_2508
- ^ Farber, Michael (March 6, 2006). "Swede Success". Sports Illustrated. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1105854/index.htm. Retrieved April 17, 2010.
- ^ "Porto chief up on referee bribery charges". ESPN. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=519776&&cc=5901. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
- ^ Lawrence Booth and Rob Smyth (2004-08-11). "What's the dodgiest game in football history?". Manchester, UK: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2004/aug/11/theknowledge.sport. Retrieved 2008-06-08.
- ^ [1]
- ^ MARK DUGGAN AND STEVEN D. LEVITT (December 2002). "Winning Isn't Everything: Corruption in Sumo Wrestling" (PDF). THE AMERICAN ECONOMIC REVIEW. http://pricetheory.uchicago.edu/levitt/Papers/DugganLevitt2002.pdf.
- ^ "Bylaw 10.3 Sports Wagering Activities" (PDF). 2009–10 NCAA Division I Manual. National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 48. http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/D110.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-06. See especially Bylaw 10.3.1, Scope of Application.
- ^ "Bylaw 31.1 Administration of NCAA Championships" (PDF). 2009–10 NCAA Division I Manual. National Collegiate Athletic Association. pp. 367–72. http://www.ncaapublications.com/productdownloads/D110.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-07. See specifically Bylaw 31.1.14.1, Restricted Advertising and Sponsorship Activities – Advertising.
- ^ Interview with Paul Condon by Charles Colville, Sky Sports June 4, 2010.
- ^ Sports Illustrated: Silman gets 46 months for his part in ASU point-shaving scandal
- ^ "Football guard 'bribed for sabotage'". BBC News. 1999-08-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/422742.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
- ^ "Bad bets and blown lights". BBC News. 1999-08-20. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/426148.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
- ^ "Italian trio relegated to Serie B". BBC. 2006-07-14. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/5164194.stm. Retrieved 2006-08-03.
- ^ "Punishments cut for Italian clubs". BBC. 2006-07-25. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/5215178.stm. Retrieved 2006-08-03.
- ^ http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/world-cup-matches-fixed-says-author/2008/08/31/1220121049179.html
- ^ http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,575586,00.html
- ^ "Declan Hill "The Fix" match fixing interview". SoccerPro.com. http://www.soccerpro.com/the-fix/. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
- ^ Reuters (2008-10-01). "Authorities to probe Zenit UEFA Cup "fix" claims". ESPNsoccernet.com. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=577977&sec=europe&&cc=5901. Retrieved 2008-10-03.
- ^ "No investigation into Zenit-Bayern fix". ESPNsoccernet.com. 2008-10-12. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=581288&sec=europe&cc=5901. Retrieved 2008-10-12.
- ^ FA launches match-fixing investigation into Norwich v Derby match, 16 October 2008, accessed 14 Match 2009
- ^ Match-fixing inquiry closed by FA, 5 December 2008, accessed 14 March 2009.
- ^ Fish, Mike (2009-05-06). "Six ex-players charged with conspiracy". ESPN.com. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=4146980. Retrieved 2009-05-12.
- ^ ROB HUGHES and ERIC PFANNER (20 November 2009). "Arrests in Europe Over Soccer Fixing Investigation". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/21/sports/soccer/21fix.html.
- ^ "StarCraft Rigging Scandal Hits e-Sports Industry". The Korea Times. 2009-05-06. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/tech/2010/05/129_64247.html. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
- ^ http://worldcricketwatch.com/video/england-vs-pakistan-match-fixing-scandal-video-footage/
Hansie Cronje
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaHansie Cronje Personal information Full name Wessel Johannes Cronje Born 25 September 1969
Bloemfontein, South AfricaDied 1 June 2002 (aged 32)
Cradock Peak, Outeniqua Mountains, South AfricaNickname Hansie Batting style Right-handed Bowling style Right-arm medium Role Batsman International information National side South Africa Test debut (cap 237) 18 April 1992 v West Indies Last Test 2 March 2000 v India ODI debut (cap 15) 26 February 1992 v Australia Last ODI 31 March 2000 v Pakistan ODI shirt no. 5 Domestic team information Years Team 1987–2000 Free State 1997 Ireland 1995 Leicestershire Career statistics Competition Tests ODI FC LA Matches 68 188 184 304 Runs scored 3714 5565 12103 9862 Batting average 36.41 38.64 43.69 42.32 100s/50s 6/23 2/39 32/57 5/32 Top score 135 112 251 158 Balls bowled 3800 5354 9897 7651 Wickets 43 114 116 170 Bowling average 29.95 34.78 34.43 33.50 5 wickets in innings 0 1 0 1 10 wickets in match 0 n/a 0 n/a Best bowling 3/14 5/32 4/47 5/32 Catches/stumpings 33/– 73/– 121/1 105/– Source: cricketarchive.com, 22 August 2007 Wessel Johannes "Hansie" Cronje (25 September 1969 - 1 June 2002) was a South African cricketer and captain of the South African national cricket team in the 1990s. He was voted the 11th greatest South African in 2004 despite having been banned for life from professional cricket for his role in a match-fixing scandal.
Contents
[hide][edit] Early life
Born in Bloemfontein, Cronje matriculated in 1987 from the prestigious Grey College school in Bloemfontein. An excellent all round sportsman, he represented the then Orange Free State in cricket and rugby at schools level. Cronje also went to the University of Orange Free State and there he left with a Bachelor of Commerce.
His father Ewie had played for Orange Free State in the 1960s, and Hansie's older brother Frans had also played first-class cricket.
[edit] First-class career
Cronje made his first-class debut for Orange Free State against Transvaal at Johannesburg in January 1988 at the age of 18. In the following season, he was a regular appearing in all eight Currie Cup matches plus being part of the Benson and Hedges Series winning team, scoring 73 as an opener in the final. In 1989-90, despite playing all the Currie Cup matches, he failed to make a century, and averaged only 19.76; however, in one-day games he averaged 60.12. During that season he scored his maiden century for South African Universities against Mike Gatting's rebels.[1]
Despite having just turned 21, Cronje was made captain of Orange Free State for the 1990-91 season. He scored his maiden century for them against Natal in December 1990, and finished the season with another century and a total of 715 runs at 39.72. That season he also scored 159* in a 40-over match against Griqualand West.
In 1992-93, he captained Orange Free State to the Castle Cup/Total Power Series double.
In 1995, Cronje appeared for Leicestershire where he scored 1301 runs at 52.04 finishing the season as the county's leading scorer.
In 1995-96, he finished the season top of the batting averages in the Currie Cup[2] his top score of 158 helped Free State chase down 389 to beat Northern Transvaal.[3]
In 1997, Cronje played for Ireland as an overseas player in the Benson and Hedges Cup and helped them to a 46-run win over Middlesex by scoring 94 not out and taking three wickets.[4] This was Ireland's first ever win against English county opposition.[5] Later in the same competition, he scored 85 and took one wicket against Glamorgan.[6]
[edit] International career
[edit] Debuts
Cronje's form in 1991/92 was impressive especially in the one-day format where he averaged 61.40. He earned an international call up for the 1992 World Cup, making his One Day International debut against Australia at Sydney. During the tournament he played in eight of the team's nine games, averaging 34.00 with the bat, while his medium pace was used in bowling 20 overs.
After the World Cup Cronje was part of the tour to the West Indies; he featured in the three ODI's and in the Test match at Bridgetown that followed he made his Test debut, this was South Africa first Test since readmission and they came close to beating a strong West Indian side, going into the final day at 122/2 chasing 200 they collapsed to 148.
India toured South Africa in 1992/93. In the one-day series Cronje managed just one fifty but with the ball he was economical and took his career best figures of 5/32, becoming the second South African to take 5 wickets in an ODI.[7] In the Test series that followed he scored his maiden test century, 135 off 411 balls, after coming in at 0-1 in the second over he was last man out, after eight and three-quarter hours, in a total of 275. This contributed to South Africa's first Test win since readmission. At the end of the season in a triangular tournament with Pakistan and West Indies he scored 81 off 70 balls against Pakistan.
In South Africa's next Test series against Sri Lanka Cronje scored his second Test century, 122 in the second Test in Colombo; the victory margin of an innings and 208 runs is a South African record. He finished the series with 237 runs at 59.25 after scoring 73* in the drawn third Test.
[edit] Stand-in captain
In 1993-94, there was another Castle Cup / Total Power Series double for Orange Free State. In international cricket, he was named as vice-captain for the tour of Australia despite being the youngest member of the squad. In the first ODI of the triangular tournament with New Zealand and Australia, he guided South Africa to victory against Australia with 91*, which won him the man of the match award. He scored 71 in a rain-affected first test at Melbourne before a tense second test that South Africa won by 5 runs. An injury to captain Kepler Wessels meant Cronje was captain for the final day of the match. Between the second and third tests, the one-day tournament continued, now with Cronje as captain, South Africa made the final series but lost it 2-1 to Australia. He became South Africa's second youngest Test captain, after Murray Bisset in 1898-99, when he led the team for the third test at Adelaide but it was an unsuccessful start to his captaincy career as the series was squared.
In February 1994, there was the return series as Australia toured South Africa. Cronje started the ODI series with scores of 112, 97, 45 and 50* and when Australia played Orange Free State in their final match before the first Test, Cronje hit 251 off 306 balls, 200 of these came on the final day in which 294 runs were added. Despite this, Orange Free State lost the match. In the first test at Johannesburg, he added another century as South Africa won by 197 runs. This innings was the end of a 14 day period in which he'd scored 721 runs against the Aussies. However, he failed to reach fifty in the next two tests and four ODIs as both series were drawn.
There was another drawn series when South Africa toured England in 1994. Cronje scored only one century on the whole tour and scored only 90 runs in the three-test series. In October 1994, South Africa again came up against Australia in a triangular one day series also featuring Pakistan. Cronje scored 354 runs at an average of 88.50. Despite this, South Africa lost all their matches.[8] This series was Bob Woolmer's first as coach and Kepler Wessels' last as captain. Cronje, who'd previously been vice-captain, was named as captain for the test series with New Zealand in 1994-95.
[edit] Permanent captain
South Africa lost the first Test in Johannesburg but before the second test the two teams plus Pakistan and Sri Lanka competed for the Mandela Trophy, New Zealand failed to gain a win in the six match round robin stage while South Africa beat Pakistan in the final. This changed the momentum as South Africa secured wins in Durban and Cape Town, where Cronje scored his fourth test century, he was the first captain since W. G. Grace to win a three-match rubber after being one down.
In early 1995, South Africa won one-off tests against both Pakistan and New Zealand, in Auckland Cronje scored the only century of the match before a final day declaration left his bowlers barely enough time to dismiss the Kiwis.
In October 1995, South Africa won a one-off Test with Zimbabwe. Cronje scored a second innings 54* to guide them to seven wicket win. In two one-dayers that followed, he took five wickets as South Africa comfortably won both. South Africa won the five Test series against England 1-0 despite Cronje struggling, scoring 113 runs at 18.83. However, he top scored in the one-day series that they won 6-1.
In the 1996 World Cup, he scored 78 and 45* against New Zealand and Pakistan respectively as South Africa won their group but in the Quarter final with West Indies a Brian Lara century ended their ten game winning streak.
The 1996-97 season featured back-to-back series with India. The first away was lost 2-1. The home series was won 2-0. In the six tests combined, Cronje managed one fifty. Cronje produced better form against Australia, averaging over 50 in both test and ODI series although both were lost.
Cronje started 1997-98 by leading South Africa to their first series victory in Pakistan, his batting continued to struggle with his biggest contribution being taking the wickets of Inzamam-ul-Haq and Moin Khan in the Third Test.[9]
[edit] Better form
Cronje once again came up against Australia and once again ended on the losing side. In the triangular one day series they won the group with Australia just scraping through, they also won the first 'final' but South Africa lost the last two finals. During the group matches Cronje had threatened to lead his team off after Pat Symcox had missiles thrown at him, Symcox had the last laugh ending the match with 4/24. Before the Test series started he scored consecutive centuries against Tasmania and Australia A these were his first in two years.
In the first Test, Cronje scored 70 as South Africa saved the match; in the second Test, he lasted 335 minutes for his 88. Despite this, they lost by an innings. In the third Test, they scored 517 and although Mark Taylor carried his bat for 169, Australia needed to bat 109 overs to save the match. Mark Waugh batted 404 minutes, and, despite controversy when Waugh hit one of his bails off (under Law 35 he was adjudged to have finished his stroke and therefore given not out), South Africa fell three wickets short. Cronje put a stump through the umpires` dressing room door after the match and was lucky to avoid a ban.[10]
Cronje missed the first Test of the series with Pakistan because of a knee injury. The second Test at Durban was lost, but he top scored at Port Elizabeth with 85, to help square the three Test series 1-1. There was still time in the season for a two-Test series with Sri Lanka. The first was won with Cronje scoring 49 and 74; in the second Test, he took 3/14, his best bowling in Tests,[11] and smashed 82 off 63 balls, his fifty being brought up with three consecutive sixes off Muttiah Muralitharan, and was reached off just 31 balls; at the time, it was the second fastest in Tests after Kapil Dev`s. In the triangular series, which South Africa won, he scored only one fifty at East London where he also took 2/17 off 10 overs.[12]
During the 1998 Test series against England, Cronje scored five consecutive fifties, having failed to score one in the nine previous Tests against them. In his fiftieth Test, at Trent Bridge he scored 126, his sixth and last Test century and his first in 29 matches. During his second innings of 67, he passed 3,000 runs - only the second South African to do so.[13] However, England won the Test, and the one at Headingley, to win the series 2-1, Cronje finished the series as South Africa's top scorer with 401 runs at 66.83.
[edit] Whitewash, tie and forfeit
In the West Indies series of 1998-99, Cronje captained South Africa to their only whitewash in a five Test series.[14] His best batting against West Indies came when playing for Free State; he scored 158* as they chased down 438 and made up a first innings deficit of 249.[15] In the ODI series he was South Africa's top scorer and took 11 wickets at 14.72 as South Africa won 6-1.
In March 1999, they toured New Zealand, beating them 1-0 in the Test series and 3-2 in the one-dayers.
Cronje's form at the 1999 World Cup was poor, finishing with 98 runs at 12.25 as South Africa was eliminated after the famous tied semi-final against Australia at Edgbaston. In the first match of the tournament versus India, Cronje came onto the field with an earpiece wired to coach Bob Woolmer, but at the first drinks break match referee Talat Ali ordered him to remove it.[16]
In October 1999, Cronje became South Africa's highest Test run scorer during the first Test against Zimbabwe.[17] The two Test series was won 2-0 thanks to innings victories. South Africa won the series with England in the fourth Test at Cape Town, Cronje's fiftieth as captain.
The fifth test of the 1999-2000 South Africa versus England series at Centurion was ruined by rain, entering the final day only 45 overs had been possible with South Africa 155/6. On the final morning as they batted on, news filtered through that the captains had met and were going to "make a game of it". A target of 250 from 70 overs was agreed. When South Africa reached 248/8, Cronje declared; both teams then forfeited an innings leaving England a target of 249 to win the Test, which they did with two wickets left and only five balls remaining. It ended South Africa's 14 game unbeaten streak in Test cricket. It was later learnt Cronje accepted money and a gift from a bookmaker in return for making an early declaration in this Test. (See below).
Cronje top scored with 56 after South Africa were left reeling at 21-5 in the Final of the triangular tournament which featured England and Zimbabwe.[18] Cronje struggled against India in his final Test series, scoring 25 runs in two Tests and taking six wickets. South Africa still completed their first series win in India, India's first lost series at home since 1987.
On 31 March 2000, his cricket career finished with a 73-ball 79 against Pakistan in the final of Sharjah Cup 1999/2000.[19]
[edit] Career record
Under Cronje's captaincy, South Africa won 27 Tests and lost 11, completing series victories against every team except Australia.[20]
He captained the One-Day International team to 99 wins out of 138 matches with one tied match and three no results.
He holds the South African record for matches captained in and matches won as captain.[21] His 99 wins as captain makes him the third most successful captain worldwide in terms of matches won, behind Ricky Ponting and Allan Border, and in terms of percentage of wins (73.70), behind Ponting and Clive Lloyd.[22]
Between September 1993 and March 2000, he played in 162 consecutive ODIs, a South African record.[23]
[edit] Match fixing
On 7 April 2000, Delhi police revealed they had a recording of a conversation between Cronje and Sanjay Chawla, a representative of an Indian betting syndicate, over match-fixing allegations. Three other players, Herschelle Gibbs, Nicky Boje, and Pieter Strydom, were also implicated.
On 8 April 2000, the UCBSA (United Cricket Board of South Africa) denied their players were involved in match-fixing. Cronje said "the allegations are completely without substance".[24] However, on 11 April Cronje was sacked as captain after confessing to Ali Bacher that he had not been "entirely honest". He admitted accepting between $10,000 to $15,000 from a London-based bookmaker for 'forecasting' results, not match fixing, during the recent one day series in India.
On 7 June, the King Commission began. The following day, Gibbs revealed that Cronje had offered him $15,000 to score less than 20 runs in the 5th ODI at Nagpur. He also admitted another offer of $15,000 to Henry Williams to concede more than 50 runs in that same match. Gibbs scored 74 off 53 balls and Williams injured his shoulder and couldn't complete his second over, so neither received the $15,000. Off-spinner Derek Crookes, who was also a witness, admitted being surprised to open the bowling at Nagpur.[25]
On 15 June, Cronje released a statement that revealed all his contact with bookmakers. In 1996 during the third Test in Kanpur, he was introduced to Mukesh Gupta by Mohammad Azharuddin. Gupta gave Cronje $30,000 to persuade the South Africans to lose wickets on the last day to lose the match. South Africa was 127/5 chasing 460, Cronje was already out and spoke to no other players. "I had received money for doing nothing". During the return tour, Cronje received $50,000 from Gupta for team information.
In the 2000 Centurion Test, Marlon Aronstam contacted him offering R500,000 for the charity of his choice together with a gift if Cronje declared and made a game of it. He also admitted asking Pieter Strydom to place a R50 bet on South Africa to win for him. After the match Aronstam visited Cronje, giving him two amounts of money (R30,000 and R20,000) together with a leather jacket. The promised R500,000 did not materialise. Before the one-day series, Cronje received repeated calls from "Sanjay" asking to fix a match. Cronje gave him the names of Gibbs, Strydom, and Boje to try to get rid of him. Cronje was offered $140,000 for the fifth ODI if Gibbs scored under 20, Williams went for more than 50 and South Africa scored around 270.[26]
On 28 August, Gibbs and Williams were suspended from playing international cricket for six months. Gibbs was fined R60,000 and Williams R10,000. Strydom received no punishment.[27]
On 11 October, Cronje was banned from playing or coaching cricket for life.[28] He challenged his life ban in September 2001 but on 17 October 2001, his application was dismissed.[29]
[edit] Plane crash
On 1 June 2002, Cronje's scheduled flight home from Johannesburg to George was grounded so he hitched a ride as the only passenger on board a Hawker Siddeley HS 748 turboprop aircraft. Near George airport, the pilots lost visibility in clouds and were unable to land, partly due to unusable navigational equipment. While circling, the plane crashed into the Outeniqua mountains northeast of the airport. Cronje, aged 32, and the two pilots were killed instantly.
In August 2006, an inquest into the plane crash by South Africa's High Court started.[30] The inquest reached the conclusion that "the death of the deceased Wessel Johannes (Hansie) Cronje was brought about by an act or omission prima facie amounting to an offence on the part of pilots."[31]
Theories Cronje was murdered on the orders of a cricket betting syndicate flourished since his death and were most recently re-floated by former Nottinghamshire coach Clive Rice in the wake of the death of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer in March 2007.[32] Cronje's involvement in match-fixing, the suspicion of murder in both the Cronje and Woolmer cases, and links between cricketers and betting syndicates have since appeared in the 2008 novel Raffles and the Match-Fixing Syndicate by Adam Corres.[33]
[edit] Life in film
Hansie, a biographical film about the life of Hansie Cronje was released on 26 September 2008. The film was written by older brother Frans Cronje and directed by Regardt van den Bergh. The title role is played by Frank Rautenbach.[34]
[edit] See also
- Declaration and forfeiture - Cronje was the only Test captain to ever forfeit an innings
- List of South Africans - voted 11 in the SABC3's Great South Africans
- List of people who died in aviation-related incidents
- List of cricketers banned for match fixing
[edit] References
- ^ South African Universities v England XI, 1989/90, Scorecard
- ^ Batting Averages in Castle Cup 1995/96
- ^ Free State v Northern Transvaal, Castle Cup 1995/96, Scorecard
- ^ Ireland v Middlesex, Benson & Hedges Cup 1997, Scorecard
- ^ Ireland v Middlesex, Benson & Hedges Cup 1997, Match Report
- ^ Glamorgan v Ireland, Benson & Hedges Cup 1997, Scorecard
- ^ South Africa v India, 1st ODI 1992/93, Match Report
- ^ Batting Averages for South Africa, Wills Triangular Series 1994/95
- ^ Pakistan v South Africa, 3rd Test 1997/98, Scorecard
- ^ Australia v South Africa, 3rd Test, Match Report
- ^ South Africa v Sri Lanka, 2nd Test 1997/98, Scorecard
- ^ South Africa v Pakistan, Standard Bank International Series 1997/98 Scorecard
- ^ S. Africa - England series highlights
- ^ Tests - Whitewashes
- ^ Free State v West Indians, 1998/99, Scorecard
- ^ Earpiece row mars South Africa win
- ^ South Africa v Zimbabwe, 1st Test 1999/2000, Scorecard
- ^ South Africa v England, Standard Bank International Series 1999/2000 Final, Scorecard
- ^ Pakistan v South Africa, Coca-Cola Sharjah Cup 1999/2000 Final, Scorecard
- ^ Tests - Most matches as captain (South Africa)
- ^ ODIs - Most matches as captain (South Africa)
- ^ ODIs - Most matches as captain
- ^ ODIs - Most consecutive matches for a team
- ^ UCBSA statement on match fixing allegations
- ^ Hansie offered me $15,000, says Gibbs
- ^ Cronje finally comes clean
- ^ Six-month bans for Gibbs, Williams
- ^ Cronje banned for life
- ^ Cronje remains an outcast
- ^ "Cronje inquest opens". Sydney Morning Herald. 2006-08-08. http://www.smh.com.au/news/cricket/cronje-inquest-opens/2006/08/08/1154802862135.html. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
- ^ "Pilot error caused Cronje crash". BBC News. 2006-08-14. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4790609.stm. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
- ^ Drake, Matt (2007-03-25). "Did a cricketer kill Woolmer?". Daily Express. http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/2710. Retrieved 2010-03-03.
- ^ Corres, Adam (Jan 2008). Raffles and the Match-Fixing Syndicate. London: Grosvenor House. pp. 324. ISBN 978-1906210625. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Raffles-And-The-Match-Fixing-Syndicate/Corres/e/9781906210625/?itm=1&USRI=%22raffles+and+the+match-fixing+syndicate%22.
- ^ Hansie (2008) at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] External links
Preceded by
Kepler WesselsSouth African Test cricket captain
1994/95 - 1999/2000Succeeded by
Shaun PollockPreceded by
Kepler WesselsSouth African ODI cricket captain
1994 - 2000Succeeded by
Shaun Pollock[show] South Africa squad – 1992 Cricket World Cup Semi-Finalists[show] South Africa squad – 1996 Cricket World Cup[show] South Africa squad – 1999 Cricket World Cup Semi-FinalistsCategories: South African cricketers | South Africa One Day International cricketers | South Africa Test cricketers | South African cricket captains | Free State cricketers | Leicestershire cricketers | Ireland cricketers | Sports betting scandals | Afrikaner people | Old Greys | South African people of Huguenot descent | 1969 births | 2002 deaths | Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in South Africa | White South African people | People from Bloemfontein | 2002 in South Africa
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