BCCI: Latif's fixing claim 'rubbish'

Rashid Latif, the former Pakistan captain, has been told that "a large number" of matches in the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) were fixed. "I've personally been told by some ICL players that a large number of matches in that league were definitely fixed," Latif said in an email. "Even in the IPL [Indian Premier League], every now and again you watch a match and feel that there is something odd happening."

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), cricket's governing body in the country, dismissed Latif's allegations yesterday when made aware of them by Reuters. "BCCI rubbishes these allegations. We will not even react to this sort of allegation. It is totally rubbish," said N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary. The unofficial ICL included a Twenty20 World Series tournament comprising mostly former international players. Unlike the lucrative IPL, it was not sanctioned by the International Cricket Council and most of their players were banned by their national boards. The 2008-09 World Series was abandoned after the attacks in Mumbai in November 2008 and there have been no matches since.

Latif, 41, played 37 Tests between 1992 and 2003 but is better known for his campaign against corruption in cricket. He gave evidence to the inquiry held by Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum into match-fixing after which Salim Malik, another ex-Pakistan captain, was banned for life in 2000. Latif said the amount of money available in Twenty20 cricket was damaging the game. "There also is a worry that players are being paid so much, situations may arise where ultimately the result doesn't matter to them," he said in his email.

"These are not clubs who have discovered them or groomed them, these are clubs that simply pay them a lot of money. There is little loyalty." * Reuters