KARACHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has welcomed the statement from the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ehsan Mani regarding criminalising match-fixing in Pakistan.

Talking to this correspondent, the spokesperson of the ICC said that they are in touch with law enforcement agencies in various countries and hoping to see the positive impact of such legislations.

“In countries where it is (match fixing) already illegal, we work closely with law enforcement agencies which enables us to carry out our work more effectively and acts as a strong deterrent to the criminals trying to corrupt the game of cricket,” the ICC Spokeperson said

“We have seen the positive impact of the recent introduction of such legislation in Sri Lanka,” he added.

Chairman PCB Ehsan Mani stated on Tuesday that Pakistan needs to bring in a legislation to criminalise match-fixing in cricket.

Fixing menace cannot be completely eradicated: Arif Abbasi

In a video message released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday, Mani also said that the PCB, at the moment, does not have the legal authority to check the financial status whenever a match-fixing incident is reported.

“We abide by the ICC guidelines and I believe there is a need to make match-fixing a criminal offence in Pakistan like it is in New Zealand, Australia, and Sri Lanka. I have already talked to the government in this regard,” Mani said.

On the other hand, Arif Ali Khan Abbasi, the former chief executive officer of the Pakistan Cricket Board, didn’t seem thrilled with the PCB’s latest approach and said that the menace of fixing could not be completely uprooted from cricket.

“Corruption in cricket has been a centuries-old phenomenon and cannot be completely eradicated. It’s an economic force which cannot be controlled by administrative measures. Of course, it can be curbed,” Arif Abbasi said.

“If parliamentary legislations would be able to cap the menace completely then it would be a ground breaking achievement,” he remarked.

Arif Ali Khan Abbasi is amongst the longest serving cricket administrators who apart from being the chief executive also served three terms as secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in Pakistan (BCCP). Abbasi was also the treasurer between 1991 and 1993 and later served as a member of the ad hoc committee from January 1994 to March 1995.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2020