Cricket Board to Discuss Match Fixing Charges

CALCUTTA: The Working Committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) would discuss former all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar’s allegation that he was offered money by a teammate to ‘sabotage’ India's chances against Pakistan in a one-day international three years ago.

"The BCCI will study the matter and discuss it in its next Working Committee meeting," Board Secretary Jagmohan Dalmiya said, here, June 3. Four days later, Dalmiya asked Prabhakar to come out in theand name the person who offered him money.

Prabhakar had in a signed article in the latest issue of the weekly magazine Outlook alleged that he was offered Rs 2.5 million by a teammate to ‘sabotage’ India’s prospects against Pakistan in the Singer Cup in Colombo in 1994.

Dalmiya denied any knowledge of former cricket Manager, Ajit Wadekar’s reported revelations that he had tapped the telephones of the national team players following allegations of ‘bribery and match-fixing’ in the cricketing world.

"I have not come across it," he said.

The BCCI Secretary said there was also a probability that Wadekar might "deny tomorrow" what has been attributed to him.

"I don’t know what he said has been properly reported or not," Dalmiya said.

He refused to say anything further on the issue saying, "I don’t want to unnecessarily raise a controversy."

Wadekar Says Charges Baseless: In Mumbai Former Indian cricket team Manager Ajit Wadekar termed all rounder Manoj Prabhakar’s allegations in a news magazine about Indian players’ involvement in betting as ‘baseless.’

In a signed article in the Onlooker the former Test all rounder had said that he (Prabhakar) was offered Rs 2.5 million by a teammate to sabotage India’s chances of beating Pakistan in the Singer Cup in 1994 in Sri Lanka.

Reacting strongly to the allegations, Wadekar said, "Prabhakar has always been a big mouth and speaks without thinking. I used to keep him away from the press during his playing days because of this habit of his."

The former Manager, who had quit after the Wills World Cup last year, said, "Prabhakar claims he is a true professional but I do not understand why he is not naming the culprit."

"May be he (Prabhakar) could have been misquoted as well," the former India Captain wondered.

Wadekar said, "after the team’s pathetic showing in South Africa there were rumors that bribery and match-fixing were a common thing in the cricketing world."

"I went to the extent of having the telephones in the players’ rooms tapped for about one and half months but failed to get any incriminating or objectionable information," added the stylish left handed batsman of yore.

Wadekar Denies Statement: True to Board Secretary Dalmiya’s prediction, Wadekar, June 7, appeared to deny the press statement attributed to him in which he was quoted as saying that he had tapped the telephones of Indian players to monitor whether any of them were involved in betting and match-fixing.

Commenting on the raging controversy, Wadekar told a television channel that he was not an investigating agency to undertake the tapping of anybody’s telephone.

This new statement seemed to be a virtual denial of his recent statement where he said he had monitored the telephones of the players following India’s dismal showing in the 1991-92 tour of South Africa as rumors were rife about bribery and match-fixing.

This new statement by Wadekar comes in the wake of Jagmohan Dalmiya asking Prabhakar to reveal the names to set an enquiry in motion. Dalmiya also refers to Wadekar’s ‘phone tapping’ saying it had also brought up nothing.

Cricket Board President Rajsingh Dungarpur, away in England, could not be contacted for his reaction.

Former Chairman of the Selection Committee, Polly Umrigar, said it was very difficult to comment on the issue as "we never experienced anything like this during our playing days."

Dalmiya Sends Letter to Prabhakar: A Calcutta report said Dalmiya has asked Prabhakar to come out in theand name the persons who offered him money to play below his standards during his playing career.

In a letter to Prabhakar, Dalmiya said, "You will appreciate the seriousness of the allegation and we would request you to furnish full details of the persons involved as also other relevant details so that the Board can make full enquiry into the matter," a BCCI press release here said.

Firmly stating that nobody would be spared if proved guilty of match fixing, the BCCI Secretary said, the Board would also not allow anyone to settle personal scores using media as the platform.

Stating that the former Manager of the Indian team, Ajit Wadekar dismissed Prabhakar’s allegation, Dalmiya said that Wadekar had not mentioned this in any of his reports after the tours.

Wadekar had claimed that since the rumors were afloat about briberies in the cricketing world, he had ‘kept a tab’ on the players’ activities without their knowledge but found nothing incriminating or objectionable, Dalmiya said. (PTI)

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