PCB saddened by ICC verdict, yet ready to abide by it fully
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has finally broken its silence on the spot-fixing scandal that was brought to an end with the verdict of the International Cricket Council’s tribunal headed by Michael Beloff.
The tribunal has slapped bans varying from 10 to 5 years on Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif at the end of the one-day hearing held in Doha’s Financial Centre on Saturday.
The sentences have been received with a degree of sadness in Pakistan where the game is as important as religion to a vast majority of the troubled nation.
Many cricket experts on the other hand feel that the decision would be starting a new era in the game and give a clear indication to the players, who are set to play the game at the top level in the years to come, that there is no place for corrupt practice
in the gentlemen’s game.
The press release by PCB stated that they had acted as per the rules and regulations of the ICC.
The governing body of the game claimed that when the scandal first broke out in August 2010, the trio was under contract with the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 Cricket Board.
In the wake of that, the PCB provided them with legal support in U.K at that time. However, after they were provisionally suspended by ICC under the Anti Corruption Code, the players had to face the tribunal in their individual capacity.
As a result the PCB implemented the clause 4.6.4 of the ICC Anti Corruption Code which states that no player may play, coach or otherwise participate, or be involved in any capacity in any International Match or any other kind of match, function, event or
activity during the period of Provisional Suspension.
The man at the helm of the PCB, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Ijaz-Butt-c64128, who has copped criticism from all quarters in the last few months also gave his own statement on the verdict. He thinks that the right decision has been made and the Board would work closely with the three players
and ensure that there is no such incident in the future.
Butt explained, “The time from August last when spot-fixing came to light, has been an extremely painful one for Pakistan cricket. I now hope that this unfortunate saga is put to rest and we can concentrate on cricket. We will continue to work with ICC on
this sensitive matter in future also. We will also see how we can help the 3 players with their education and rehabilitation program.”
The players who have to fight the case lodged with the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK also have to fight off the ICC battle on their own. They have the option of going to the Court of Arbitration of Sports in Switzerland and have the verdict of the
governing body of the game reviewed.
Under the ICC Anti Corruption Code, the appeal before the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) has to be filed within 21 days by the players. The press release by the PCB clearly stated that the Board has no intention to appeal against the decision of the
tribunal in the CAS.
On the other hand, the Board has vowed to fight the menace of corruption in the game. The Board claims that they had done everything possible to co-operate with the ICC and would continue to leave no stone unturned to do more of the same in the coming years,
as they want to ensure the integrity of cricket is protected.
Butt concluded his statement with the determination of fighting off the menace "Like all my colleagues in the ICC I am determined to maintain the integrity of our sport. This is fundamental".
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