Mohammad Ashraful, former skipper of Bangladesh, was kept off from any cricketing activities under the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) jurisdiction until the final report of the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) on investigations into suspected match-fixing and spot-fixing allegations in this year’s BPL is submitted. The decision was taken based on Ashraful’s confession to the ACSU of his involvement in fixing BPL matches for Dhaka Gladiators.
The final report of the ACSU is expected to be submitted within a week. If the report carries any concrete proof against any person, the BCB will take stern action according to ICC laws.
“As he (Ashraful) has confessed to his involvement in fixing matches in the BPL to the ACSU team, he should not be allowed to play any level of cricket until we get the full report of the investigation,” BCB president Nazmul Hassan Papon told reporters in a jam-packed press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.
A frustrated and dejected Ashraful, however, sought apology from the nation, admitting his involvement in the misdeed after he was temporarily banned from playing cricket.
“I sought apology from the nation for my involvement. In my 12 years’ career, I have tried to keep my honesty. It’s the first time that the ACSU had grilled me on the match-fixing issue. So I decided to cooperate with them for the sake of cricket. I admitted to the ACSU what I did and who were involved with me. I tried to tell the whole truth. At this point I can’t disclose in what situation I had to do this,” Ashraful told the reporters at his residence.
It’s the first time he talked to reporters after news of his involvement broke out.
Some players like Mosharraf Hossain Rubel, Mahbubul Alam Robin and the management of Dhaka Gladiators were also reportedly involved in match-fixing, but no decision was taken about their fate.
“The names of some other players have also come up, but they denied their involvement. So we can’t take any decision regarding them until they are proved guilty,” he added.
The BCB and the ICC will jointly make the ACSU report public, Papon said.
“The ACSU members told me that they would submit their report within five or six days, as they were on the verge of finalising it. They have quizzed all people involved except one whom they were supposed to grill abroad yesterday (Monday). If they have completed quizzing that person, they are now preparing the report. But if they get some new information and if they feel that they need to quiz more people, it might take some more days to prepare the report,” Papon said.
He also revealed that if the ACSU submits concrete proof regarding involvement of the players in match-fixing, the BCB will punish them straightway, without waiting to form any other investigation committee to look into the matter further.
“If there is any concrete proof, no need to wait for anything else as the BCB has the right to punish them. And we’ll not tolerate such irregularities in our cricket. We’ll give them exemplary punishment,” said Papon. According to ICC laws, players can be banned for six months to lifetime for their involvement in match-fixing.
Ashraful also reportedly revealed the names of former skippers Khaled Mahmud Sujon and Khaled Mashud Pilot and left arm spinner Mohammad Rafique, who introduced him to a bookie at different points of his career.
When asked, the BCB chief said: “The ICC will investigate the matter of the international matches. The investigation will be lengthy as the incident happened a long time ago. The ACSU will only investigate the matter of the BPL.”
-With The Independent input
