Bangladesh players approached by bookies: board

Bangladesh's cricket board said Wednesday several senior players had been approached by bookmakers ahead of a Test series with India earlier this year.

Vice-captain Shakib Al Hasan and opening batsman Tamim Iqbal were approached ahead of the two Test series against India in January, which the home side lost 2-0, an official said.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) spokesman Jalal Yunus said the incidents were immediately reported to the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption unit, in line with procedures.

The BCB is now organising an "orientation course" for national players to educate them about the dangers of match-fixing and how to avoid bookmakers and shady agents, Yunus said.

"We are taking up a orientation course for cricketers," Yunus said. "They will learn how to detect bookies under the guise of cricket agents.

"They should learn how match-fixing can jeopardise their career and shame the nation," he said.

The move came after global cricket was plunged into a crisis at the weekend as British detectives said they were investigating seven Pakistani players on charges of spot-fixing.

Apart from the orientation course, the BCB will impose more curbs on cricketers in all future tours, Yunus said, adding the players would be told to avoid strangers and report every phone call they receive from unknown persons.

Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful told a local daily that he had also been approached by bookmakers during a foreign tour.