(UTV|COLOMBO) – The ICC has appealed to Al Jazeera to share evidence with it, after the broadcaster released its second documentary on alleged corruption in cricket. The documentary has claimed that up to 15 international matches in the 2011-12 period had been subject to spot-fixing.
Al Jazeera has claimed to have obtained recordings of a person identified as Aneel Munawar – who is said to work for the crime syndicate D Company – revealing details of fixed matches to an Indian bookmaker. Munawar was also at the centre of Al Jazeera’s previous documentary on corruption in cricket, which alleged that the Chennai Test in December 2016 and the Ranchi Test in March 2017 had been subject to spot-fixing by England and Australia players.
In response to those claims, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Australia (CA) had said there was no credible evidence linking any of their players to corruption.
The ICC had then asked Al Jazeera for its cooperation in investigating these allegations, including sharing “un-edited and unseen evidence” – which it later said the broadcaster had refused to hand over. It had also sent out a public appeal to help identify Munawar.
The ICC has now made another appeal to Al Jazeera.
“The ICC is committed to working to uphold integrity in cricket,” Alex Marshall, the general manager of the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit, said in a statement. “As you would expect we will again take the contents of the programme and any allegations it may make seriously and will investigate fully.
“However, I must refute the assertion that cricket does not take the issue of corruption seriously, we have more resources than ever before working to rid our sport of corruption.
“The investigation into these allegations has already commenced and will run alongside a number of other live unrelated investigations. When considering the claims, we will work with professional independent betting analysts.
“As with the first programme we have, and will continue to ask for the cooperation of the broadcaster. We have made repeated efforts to engage with the broadcaster as it can play such a crucial part in the full and thorough investigation it has called for.
“We do welcome the commitment from the broadcaster to share the files with Interpol and, I hope, other law enforcement agencies who can act upon the information and support us in ridding the sport of these criminals.”
Of the 15 matches Al Jazeera claimed were subject to spot-fix attempts in the 2011-12 period, seven involved England, and five Australia.
The ECB called Al Jazeera’s information “poorly prepared”, but said it had looked into the allegations and found no evidence against any England player.
“ECB takes its responsibilities on anti-corruption and preserving the integrity of cricket very seriously,” an ECB spokesperson said. “Whilst the limited information we have been given by Al Jazeera is poorly prepared and lacks clarity and corroboration it has been properly assessed.
“Analysis of this by the ECB Integrity Team has cast no doubt on the integrity or behaviour of any England player, current or former.
“The materials we have been given have been referred to the ICC’s Anti-Corruption unit and we will continue to work with them, as is the correct procedure for protecting the game. We are also working closely with the PCA (Professional Cricketers’ Association) and keeping them informed.”
CA, meanwhile, had been aware of Al Jazeera’s plans to release a second documentary, and of the Australia matches mentioned in it. James Sutherland, CA’s then chief executive, had said a CA integrity unit investigation had been conducted into the claims.
“Although not having been provided an opportunity to review any raw audio or footage, our long-standing position on these matters is that credible claims should be treated very seriously, and investigated,” Sutherland said in late August. “Cricket Australia’s Integrity Unit have conducted a review of the latest claims by Al Jazeera, from a known criminal source, and, from the limited information provided by Al Jazeera, our team have not identified any issues of corruption relating to current or former Australian players.
“We have handed all material over to the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit to enable them to fully investigate and we will continue to cooperate with the ICC.”
Courtesy : espncricinfo
