ICC should probe more Pakistani players: Mohd Zahid

Mon, Sep 06 10 08:07 PM

Karachi, Sep 6 (PTI) Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Zahid feels there are more Pakistani players indulging in such fixing activities and they need to be investigated by the ICC anti-corruption and security unit. "They are more rotten eggs in the Pakistan cricket set-up and these rotten eggs need to be fully investigated by the cricketing authorities," Zahid said on the pakpassion.net website. Zahid, who is rated as the fastest bowler ever to play for Pakistan but could manage just 5 Test and 11 one-day appearances due to injury problems, said that although at the moment three players and a fourth unnamed player were under investigation, they were others who should also be investigated. Zahid who is currently playing league cricket in England said that he wasn''t surprised by the three names that have come out. "I wasn''t surprised when the three names came out. Salman Butt was a decent guy. I trained with him quite a lot in his early days and I was very impressed with his attitude, but it seems that perhaps he has been mixing with the wrong crowd if the allegations are to be believed. "The players want to make quick and big money. I think they will have instigated any dealings with a bookie. I don''t think the ICC should be at all lenient with the players, irrespective of age and experience. "If any of the players have been involved in this wrongdoing, then they should get a life ban. The ICC needs to set a precedent and ensure that their punishment is a lesson for young players to not to get involved in such activities," he said. Zahid said he is shocked that the issue of spot-fixing has come to the fore only now. "Match fixing has been going on in the game for a very long time. It''s not just been a Pakistani problem but an international one, and the authorities should really have looked into the problem a lot earlier," he added. "Spot fixing is a more recent invention after match fixing became more difficult to instigate, but I think that match fixing was prevalent in Pakistani cricket circles more so in the 90s," he stated. Zahid blamed greed was the only reason for the Pakistani cricketers to allegedly get themselves involved in fixing. "The sort of money they would make from corrupt practices in one year they will get from ten years of their contract with the board," he said. He also felt the board should have done more with the Justice (retd) Qayyum report. "The Qayyum report was literally brushed under the carpet. Had some of the recommendations made in that report been implemented I''m sure that Pakistan cricket would not be in the mess that it finds itself in," he said.

Source: Published>

Chelsea defender Ashley Cole's new flat burgled

Published>Mon, Sep 06 10 05:11 PM

London, Sep 6 (ANI): Chelsea defender Ashley Cole's new flat was burgled while he was away playing for England against Bulgaria.

The burglary was reported at 6pm on Saturday. Cole had been staying at a hotel with his England teammates before Friday's clash and returned late Saturday.

Thieves took away valuables and personal documents worth 350,000 pounds from his flat in Esher, Surrey.

Last night detectives were waiting for Cole, 29, to arrive back to list fully what was stolen in the burglary, discovered on Saturday, The Sun reports.

The England ace had been away preparing for Friday's 4-0 win over Bulgaria and Tuesday's game against Switzerland.

In February, burglars fled empty-handed after trying to break into the 4.5 million pounds Surrey mansion he shared with ex-wife, Cheryl. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Shiv Sundar Das to lead Orissa in cricket tourney

Mon, Sep 06 10 04:37 PM

Cuttack, September 6 (PTI) Former India opener Shiv Sundar Das will lead Orissa in the Moin Ud Dowlah Gold Cup Cricket Tournament to be held in Hyderabad from September 10-23. Announcing a 14-member squad, Orissa selectors picked Subhrajit Sahoo and Ansuman Gope as wicketkeepers for the invitational two-day tournament which will see participation from 14 teams including two teams from hosts Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA). The selectors also picked Laganjit Samal to lead a 15-member side in the third S P Baruah All-India Invitation Tournament to be held under the aegis of the Assam Cricket Association (ACA) in Guwahati and Tinsukia from September 15-30. Moin-Ud-Dowlah Gold Cup Squad: Shiv Sundar Das (Captain), Natraj Behera, Sandeep Mulia, Niranjan Behera, Subit Biswal, Gobind Podder, Subhrajit Sahoo (WK), Biplab Samantaray, Lagnajit Samal, Basanta Mohanty, Santosh Jena, Dhiraj Singh, Ansuman Gope (WK), Alok Mangaraj S P Baruah Tournament Squad: Lagnajit Samal (Captain), Girija Rout, Sandeep Mulia, Gobind Podder, Biplab Samantaray, Abhilash Mallick, Subhrajit Sahoo (WK), Alok Sahoo, Alok Managaraj, Bibhudutta Panda, Manas Muduli, Sujit Lenka, Ananda Sahoo, Arabind Singh, Santosh Sethi.

Source: Published>

Fresh pictures emerge of Pak players with Majeed

Mon, Sep 06 10 04:21 PM

Melbourne, Sep 6 (PTI) Suspicion that the Australia-Pakistan Sydney Test could have been fixed is bound to get stronger with a newspaper here splashing a picture of some Pakistani cricketers with alleged bookie Mazhar Majeed, who is at the center of a spot-fixing scandal that has rocked the game. ''The Australian'' newspaper printed a picture of Majeed, who was arrested and later released on bail following a sting operation exposing his involvement in a betting ring in London, with Pakistani cricketers. The picture shows the players dining with Majeed at a Perth restaurant three weeks after the match. The photograph is set lend credence to the suspicion that the Sydney Test, which Pakistan lost from a position of strength, might have been fixed. "In the Sydney Test Match they made 1.8 million pounds (USD 2.8 million). They gave away the match," Paistani opener Yasir Hameed told British tabloid ''The News of the World'' in another video of the stiong operation. Pakistani wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal dropped four easy catches during the match and the ICC has reportedly written to him on an issue which is not yet known. Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt and pacers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif have already been suspended after allegedly bowling no balls to order.

Source: Published>

'Worst-ever flooding could destabilize Pak government in coming months'

Published>Mon, Sep 06 10 04:17 PM

Thata Sial (Pakistan), Sep 6(ANI): Pakistani officials, diplomats and aid workers have warned that while a civil unrest has so far been averted, the aftermath of the worst-ever flooding in the country could destabilize the government in the months to come.

According to The New York Times, most political commentators said that President Asif Ali Zardari and his government are safe for the time being only because no one wants to take on the immense responsibilities of the crisis.

They also claim that the main opposition leader, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, does not appear ready to test his party in national elections.

Another expert said that the management of the disaster has added to the distrust that many Pakistanis already feel for their civilian political leaders.

The expert said that the government's situation had also deteriorated following the efforts put in by the armed forces, who have been performing rescue and relief missions in the affected areas.

Among the displaced people in Punjab and Sindh Provinces, many said that they do not expect the government to handle the situation any better.

"The influential ones are getting all the money and the poor will get nothing," said Wazir Ali, whose family is camping in a relief camp in Sindh.

Qaim Din, a farm labourer, said that he was not optimistic about government promises, and feared going back to his village when the floods receded.

"We will die of hunger. We are very poor, " Din said.

The floods have claimed the lives of over 1600 people, and affected an estimated 20 million people, an eighth of the population. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Champions League: Katich says Australians will revel in S. Africa's pacy conditions

Published>Mon, Sep 06 10 04:07 PM

Sydney, Sept.6 (ANI): Australian opener and New South Wales captain Simon Katich believes that playing conditions in South Africa will help his first class team to lift the Twenty20 Champions League trophy for a second consecutive time.

Katich reckons both Victoria and South Australia will also get equal help from the South African veld.

Both sides will be keen to use their pace attacks to make early incisions against opponents from India, South Africa, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

South Australia have Shaun Tait and Australian squad member Peter George to call on, while the Bushrangers' have Dirk Nannes, Peter Siddle, Clint McKay, Shane Harwood and James Pattinson.

"I'd say Australian guys will adapt well to (South African) conditions, because we've got guys who are used to playing on wickets that have a bit of life in them or batsmen having to play hook shots at the short ball because the wickets probably have a little more pace and bounce," The Age quoted Katich, as saying.

"It will be a good advantage for our guys and also the South African teams, playing on their home turf. We saw in the second Indian Premier League in South Africa that certain Indian teams probably battled a bit in that second year because their players didn't adjust that well to the conditions," he added.

"You can't afford too many slip-ups in that competition, you can't afford to lose one of the first two games otherwise you're pretty much gone," said Katich.

"Everything was cut-throat and just trying to win every game. It was pretty difficult playing teams from different countries where we hadn't played them before, but we had a bit of vision of opposition teams, which helped, so a lot of guys sat down and saw that. But a lot of our preparation was about getting our skills right," he said. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Rooney's hooker scored a hat trick by romping with 3 other footballers

Published>Mon, Sep 06 10 03:53 PM

London, Sep 06 (ANI): Jenny Thompson, the hooker whom Love rat Wayne Rooney paid 1,200 pounds a night, has revealed of having sex with at least three other Premier League footballers.

Jenny Thompson, 21, was even known as "Premiership Jen" on the party circuit because of her lust for top flight players.

The leggy brunette told friends she romped with two defenders and performed a sex act on an international striker in the toilets of a Manchester nightclub - for a "bargain" 75 pounds, reports the Sun.

Manchester United and England striker Rooney, 24, who bedded the hooker while his wife Coleen was pregnant with their son Kai, will be shocked to find she also scored with some of his footballing rivals. (ANI)

Source: Web Search