Sharjah: The news of the arrests of some Pakistan players have clouded the resumption of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), which began with a clash between Islamabad United and Quetta Gladiators at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.
Though it was revealed initially that two people had been arrested by the National Crime Agency (NCA) in United Kingdom in relation to the ongoing investigation into alleged corruption in the PSL, it’s now confirmed that one of the arrested persons was Pakistan opener Nasir Jamshed. Both arrested persons have been released on bail until April 2017 pending further inquiries.
Pakistan openers Sharjeel Khan and Khalid Latif were provisionally suspended from the PSL last week for breaking the anti-corruption code. Three players: Mohammad Irfan, Zulfiqar Babar and Shahzaib Hasan were also questioned by anti-corruption officers in relation to the investigation.
It is now understood that Sharjeel and Khalid’s central contracts have been suspended. They may also face a ban ranging from six months to a life ban.
The developments have sparked panic among players involved in the PSL at large and many are now cagey about meeting anyone in a hotel lobby or in private functions. The PCB has issued show cause notices to the suspended players and a disciplinary inquiry into the breaches of the code will commence soon.
According to a source, Sharjeel and Khalid arrived at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore for a meeting with the anti-corruption unit and PCB’s legal officials.
Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman has revealed that a senior judge will be appointed to head a tribunal and that Sharjeel and Khalid will be allowed to clarify their position.
Sohail Khan, father of Sharjeel has remarked that his son has denied being involved in spot-fixing scandal. He claimed that Sharjeel, being a well-known cricketer, has lots of people calling on him on a daily basis and a suspicious character could have used the opportunity to get close to him in the hotel lobby.
The talk here is that the anti-corruption unit had eight detectives on duty during the PSL and that they had been following Sharjeel and Khalid for the last few months. The detectives are said to have collected strong evidence against the duo and only then sought to initiate action.
Misbah Ul-Haq, captain of the Islamabad United team and the most experienced player in the league and also in the Pakistan team, has called for players to be more responsible. He candidly admitted that the incident did disturb his team.
Meanwhile, discussions on whether the PSL final should be held in Lahore are in full swing after the recent bomb blasts in the city.
The PCB authorities will be contacting the Punjab government on this matter.
Najam Sethi, chairman of PSL, has stated that the final may be held in Dubai with foreign players or only with Pakistan players in Lahore.
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