ICC Worried as Indian Bookies ‘Spot-fix’ World Cricket

CBTF Team avatar   
CBTF Team
Since the highly-publicized match-fixing in indian cricket controversy in the early 2000s, corruption in cricket has dominated news stories.

According to Alex Marshall, head of the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit, Indian bookmakers are openly active around the world. The majority of dishonest Indian bookies are found worldwide, according to Marshall. Since the highly-publicized match-fixing in indian cricket controversy in the early 2000s, corruption in cricket has dominated news stories.

As they investigate serious spot-fixing allegations against several individuals who were successful in persuading cricketers to perform below par and facilitating spot-fixing in several T20 cricket leagues in India and abroad, officials of the Anti-Corruption Unit of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are asking people.

Caribbean Premier League

ACU officials allege that the person is based in Chennai, has a beachfront mansion, runs a few hotels, socializes with some of the biggest movie stars from Bollywood and the southern states, and began his career in the textile industry. The individual, who first became interested in cricket in 2003–2004, has broadened his influence and now has a firm hold over the Tamil Nadu Premier Cricket League and the Karnataka Premier Cricket League. He has also already completed several fixings.

The ACU is looking into whether he is the same person who was deported from the West Indies after it was discovered that an Indian was allegedly fixing games in the Caribbean Premier League with a Pakistani companion (CPL). The Indian bookmaker allegedly approached a Pakistani cricket player during the CPL. Now, Indian investors own a substantial portion of the CPL, with Trinbago Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan being the largest shareholder. Barbados Tridents defeated Guyana Amazon Warriors to win the 2018 Caribbean Premier League.

The fact that the specific team owner is from South India and that the other franchise owners were told of his exile is both intriguing and interesting.

The Subject Resides In Chennai And Is Wealthy And Influential

He cares for the families and even the relatives of cricket players year-round and works closely with them. The athletes are willing to communicate with him and fix games for him. According to a senior BCCI official, he is "very, very big." The BCCI official claimed that the issue is significant and that it has the BCCI, the richest cricket organization in the world, in tangles. Officials of the board, who recently basked in the glory of hosting the first day and night test with the pink ball an event that even turned Kolkata into a pink city, are understandably concerned because all fingers point toward three countries: India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, where spot-fixing and betting are rampant.

BCCI and ICC Need To Have An Iron Grip

The world's richest cricket board occasionally is engulfed in spot-fixing. Because of the situation, according to a BCCI official, organizers of the state T20 tournaments have started working openly with bookmakers and fixers. Under the condition that he not be identified, the official said, "Both the BCCI and ICC need to have an iron grip on the situation, or else the subcontinent will be the main center for illegal money in the game."

The majority of cricket bookmakers are now situated in India, which is of legitimate concern to the ICC, which has its headquarters in Dubai. After communicating with a seasoned Indian bookmaker named Deepak Aggarwal, the top player from Bangladesh, Shakib Al Hasan, received a two-year suspension last month.

The ace all-rounder, who also serves as the nation's Test and T20 captain, was unable to travel to India for the just-completed test series. His involvement in fixing has now made the Bangladesh Cricket Board's issues worse. To defend the Bangabandhu BPL from Indian bookmakers, the BCB is currently adopting drastic measures. Shakib revealed to the ICC that Indian bookmakers, particularly Aggarwal, had been making him offers. 

The cricketer admitted to the BCB that the ICC's ACU was not where he reported. Intriguingly, Aggarwal and two of his supporters were detained and arrested in Raigarh in 2017. Aggarwal reportedly played a role in the suicide of Indian cricketer Vijay Kumar after being released from prison. Vijay Kumar penned a note before taking his own life stating that he had borrowed Rs 500,000 from an Indian bookie and was unable to repay the money. The cricketer accused Aggarwal of intimidating him into making bets as well.

ICC Anti Corruption Tribunal

The International Cricket Council has also been urged by Pakistani senators to look into the suspected connections between Indian bookmakers and professional cricket players. The current spot-fixing incident involving three Pakistani cricketers Salman Butt, Muhammad Asif, and Muhammad Aamer who have all been given suspensions by the International Cricket Council (ICC) anti-corruption tribunal was attributed by the senators to an alleged Indian betting syndicate.

The ICC should now broaden the scope of its investigations into the spot-fixing scandal to include Indian ties, "Reporters were briefed by senator Ghaffar Qureshi, chair of the senate's standing committee on sports, following a meeting with Pakistan Cricket Board officials.

It is essential, according to senator Haroon Akhtar, to reveal the part Indian bookmakers played in cricket corruption.

The PCB informed the Senators on many cricket-related topics, including the government report on the militant attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in 2009, the recent spot-fixing case involving the Pakistani trio, the captaincy dispute before the World Cup, and other relevant matters.

According to Senator Qureshi, the committee was upset that the authorities did not take action against the police officers who were accused of duty-related carelessness that resulted in the attack on the Sri Lankan team.

He said that the PCB had also informed the committee about wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider's refugee application in England.

"Zulqarnain reportedly informed the board that he was no longer interested in playing cricket when they approached him. This is a regrettable situation, and we'll talk to the foreign ministry to make sure it doesn't happen again, "he said.

Javed Miandad, a former captain of Pakistan, had earlier encouraged the three players who had been suspended from working with the cricket board to reveal the gang responsible for the match fixing in indian cricket scandal in international cricket.

Wrapping Up

Spot-fixing will be difficult to manage and contain unless that occurs with the ICC and BCCI. The major issue is that match-fixing in indian cricket and spot-fixing are illegal in India. The former captain alleged that the Board's incapacity let bookies persuade KPL, TNPL, and other players that there was simple, low-risk money to be made.

Watch CBTF MyTube For More Cricket videos and Highlights.

No comments found