ICCWATCH

15 June 2018 | Daniel Brettig, ESPNcricinfo   Whatever you think of the recent Al Jazeera documentary alleging spot-fixing in Tests involving England and Australia, it was a reminder that the unregulated Indian betting market remains a problem beyond the ability of cricket to control. A looming Indian Law Commission report into the area will be far more critical to safeguarding the game's integrity than any expose could ever be.   A board at Lord's displaying bookmakers' odds during an Ashes Test. Will such sights ever be seen at Indian grounds? "The criminal mafia that runs match-fixing and betting is also involved in other criminal activities in India. Large overlap - these are, by and large, the same people who are involved in narcotics trafficking, which a very big industry in India, far bigger than the cricket. Past experience shows that all these people have gotten away. I can't predict the future."   He did, though.   These words ca...

21 October 2018 | The Guardian Al-Jazeera alleges 26 scams in 15 international matches England players ‘batted to order’ in seven of them, it is claimed ECB analysis of al-Jazeera’s information ‘has cast no doubt on the integrity or behaviour of any England player: Getty An al-Jazeera documentary has claimed that 15 international cricket matches in 2011 and 2012 were the subject of 26 spot-fixing scams, with “a small group” of England players alleged to have been involved on seven occasions.   Cricket’s Match-Fixers: The Munawar Files is the follow-up to the Qatar-based news network’s previous such programme in May this year. It looks into the movements of Aneel Munawar, an alleged operative for the Indian crime syndicate D-Company who was recently the subject of a public appeal by the ICC’s anti-corruption unit.   The film was made available by al-Jazeera on Sunday and details the alleged spot-fixing arrangements – ie the number of runs that would be scored...

9 October 2018 | Dhaka Tribune Irfan and Nadeem were also charged with "influencing results or progress" of matches during the 2016 World Twenty20 campaign. Hong Kong cricketer Irfan Ahmed bowls: ICC Hong Kong's Irfan Ahmed, Nadeem Ahmed and Haseeb Amjad were provisionally suspended on Monday after being charged under the International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption code.   The ICC said in a media release that the three players had been charged with 19 counts of breaching the code, including "fixing or contriving" aspects of Hong Kong's World Cup qualifiers against Scotland and Canada in January 2014.   Irfan and Nadeem were also charged with "influencing results or progress" of matches during the 2016 World Twenty20 campaign.   Three Hong Kong players have been charged by the International Cricket Council with a total of 19 counts of breaching the Anti-Corruption Code.   Irfan faces nine charges, while Nadeem and...

23 October 2018 | Dhaka Tribune The International Cricket Council said this month that its anti-corruption unit was investigating serious allegations in Sri Lankan cricket and had provided a detailed briefing to the country's president, prime minister and sports minister Wimal Nandika Dissanayake, Chief Financial Officer, Sri Lanka Cricket Police arrested the chief financial officer of Sri Lanka Cricket on Monday for suspected financial misappropriation linked with awarding telecast rights to Sony TV, police said.   The International Cricket Council said this month that its anti-corruption unit was investigating serious allegations in Sri Lankan cricket and had provided a detailed briefing to the country's president, prime minister and sports minister.   "Following the investigation the CID arrested the main suspect. He is the chief financial officer of Sri Lanka Cricket," Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara told Reuters, naming him as 42-year old Wim...

1 November 2018 | BBC Sport Cricket Australia chairman David Peever has resigned following a scathing review into Australian cricket after the ball-tampering scandal. David Peever (right) with former Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland, who quit in June: BBC Sport A report described the body as "arrogant and controlling" and partly to blame for the incident in a Test match against South Africa in March. Players Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were banned. Interim chair Earl Eddings said Cricket Australia needed to "earn back the trust of the cricket community". The 145-page review was conducted by Sydney-based not-for-profit organisation The Ethics Centre. Immediately following the review's publication on Monday, Peever, who had recently been re-elected for another three-year term, said he was still best placed to oversee the changes, but subsequently came under increasing pressure to resign. "We ...

16 October 2018 | BBC Sport Ex-Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya says he has acted with "integrity" after being charged with corruption. Sanath Jayasuriya was the player of the tournament when Sri Lanka won the World Cup in 1996: BBC Sport The International Cricket Council (ICC) charged Jayasuriya on Monday with two breaches of its anti-corruption code. He is accused of failing to co-operate with an investigation and "concealing, tampering with or destroying evidence". Jayasuriya says the charges "do not contain allegations pertaining to match fixing, pitch fixing or any other similar corrupt activity". The 49-year-old has 14 days to respond to charges. "The charges allege that I have not been cooperative and not assisted their investigations," Jayasuriya added in a statement. "I have always conducted myself with integrity and transparency with matters concerning the sport and I will continue to do so." ...

1 November 2018 | BBC Sport Sri Lanka bowling coach Nuwan Zoysa has been charged with match-fixing by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Nuwan Zoysa took 64 wickets in 30 Tests after making his debut in 1997: BBC Sport Zoysa, who played 30 Tests and 95 one-day internationals, is accused of three breaches of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code, including being party to an effort to fix an international match. The 40-year-old former bowler has been suspended and has 14 days from 1 November to respond to the charges. England's three-Test series against Sri Lanka starts on Tuesday. Zoysa is also accused of "directly soliciting, inducing, enticing or encouraging a player" to fix or influence the progress of a match and failing to disclose approaches to "engage in corrupt conduct". Earlier this month, Alex Marshall, general manager of the ICC anti-corruption unit, announced an investigation into "serious allegations of corruption"...

31 October 2018 | Timesnownews.com Former Indian cricket team skipper Sourav Ganguly wrote a letter to top BCCI officials expressing serious concerns over the current state of affairs in the Indian board. Sourav Ganguly wrote a letter to BCCI officials expressing concern over Indian board's functioning: BCCL Just days after several state associations wrote a mail to top officials of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over the way the case of alleged sexual harassment against its CEO Rahul Johri was being handled, former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly also expressed his concern over the functioning of the Indian board. Ganguly, who remains to be one of the finest skippers to have played the game, wrote a hard-hitting letter to BCCI’s top brass, expressing concern over the way BCCI had let its fan down. Highlighting mismanagement between BCCI and Committee of Administrators (CoA), Ganguly opined that the lack of clarity had raised several question marks.   I...