'Pak cricket has suffered the greatest setback', says Imran Khan

Islamabad, Sep 6 : Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan reckons that the latest revelations in the 150,000-pound ‘spot-fixing’ scandal would further damage cricket in the country.

“Pakistan cricket has suffered the greatest setback and it’s going on and on with further claims of players’ involvement,” The Daily Times quoted Imran, as saying.

He further called for stronger ‘institutions’ in the country to prevent corruption undermining the sport in the future.

“This whole episode of cricket reflects what is happening in the country. We have to make our institutions strong because the future of the country is bright and we should not spoil it,” Imran said.

“We are regarded as a corrupt country because our institutions are not strong and the same thing is happening in cricket because of ad-hocism in the game,” he added.

Pakistan’s ‘spot-fixing’ crisis deepened on Sunday after British tabloid News of The World revealed evidence of opening batsman Yasir Hameed claiming that some of his team-mates had been fixing ‘almost every cricket match.’

Hameed’s interview followed last Sunday’s allegations that captain Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir had accepted offers from London-based agent Mazher Majeed to deliberately bowl ‘no-balls’ during the Lord’s Test against England.

Meanwhile, News of The World also said that they can “shatter the ludicrous claims” that Pakistani cricketers were victims of a “set up”.

The tabloid claims that they have cast-iron proof with timed evidence from e-mails, text messages, phone records, videos and receipts.

“We have dated receipts showing our reporters picked up 140,000 pounds from a London travel agents and took a hired car to the London hotel where our undercover Investigations Editor Mazher Mahmood met match fixer Mazhar Majeed to hand over the cash,” the tabloid said.

Police possess CCTV footage from the hotel showing Mahmood and Majeed arriving separately for the meeting on August 25.