Home Latest News Mohammad Asif Begins Rehabilitation

Mohammad Asif Begins Rehabilitation

by AFP
Arif Ali—AFP

Arif Ali—AFP

Banned cricketer meets anti-corruption wing of PCB for the first of several sessions to share information on spot fixing.

Banned Pakistan paceman Mohammad Asif on Monday spoke for the first time to the anti-corruption and vigilance wing of the cricket board as an initial step toward reviving his career.

The 30-year-old was banned for seven years, two of them suspended, after being found guilty of spot fixing at Lord’s Stadium in 2010 along with then captain Salman Butt and pace partner Mohammad Aamer. Last week he became the third and last player to confess his part in bowling deliberate no balls during the England Test in return for money. He also apologized to the fans.

A British court jailed all three players, along with their agent Mazhar Majeed, in 2011.

A Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman confirmed that Asif had met ant-corruption and vigilance officials. “Asif has volunteered information sharing and the meeting was in that connection,” said the spokesman.

The International Cricket Council made sharing information about fixing, an apology and rehabilitation mandatory to having their suspended bans dropped when the punishments were imposed in 2011.

Butt has five of his 10 years suspended while Aamer’s five was the minimum that could be imposed.

Asif said he intends to do more sessions on information sharing.

“This was the first session in which information sharing was done and there will be more such sessions,” Asif told reporters outside the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore. “I have shared whatever information I have.”

The ICC and PCB will decide on players’ rehabilitation only after gauging the level of truth in their statements.

Before the ban, Asif had taken 106 wickets in 23 Tests and was widely regarded as one of the most skillful new-ball bowlers in the game.

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