Disgraced former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and newly-banned Danish Kaneria both continue to proclaim their innocence in regards to spot-fixing.
Butt apologising for the first time for not reporting corrupt approaches on his return to Pakistan on Friday, but maintained his innocence over a spot-fixing scandal and says he will appeal his ten-year ICC ban.
The 27-year-old was imprisoned for 30 months in November on charges of accepting corrupt payments during the Lord's Test against England in August 2010.
Kaneria was given a lifetime ban by the English Cricket Board and branded a "liar" after being found guilty of match-fixing offences relating to his involvement in the Mervyn Westfield case by an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) disciplinary panel on Friday.
The leg-spinner will not accept the judgment or punishment.
"I will definitely be doing an appeal. The people trust me. I'm an honest man. I've been playing cricket with passion and love. I have done nothing wrong," the 31-year-old told Sky Sports News.
Westfield was jailed for four months in February, but served two before being released in April, after admitting he accepted ?6,000 ($9,346) to under-perform during a Pro40 match between Essex and Durham in 2009.
The now 24-year-old Westfield named Kaneria - arrested with him in 2010 but released without charge - as the link between bookmakers and players.
And an ECB panel disciplinary panel agreed Friday, saying: "We are left in no reasonable doubt that Danish Kaneria knowingly induced or encouraged Mervyn Westfield not to perform on his merits in the Durham match."
The panel said: "We regard Danish Kaneria as a grave danger to the game of cricket...Accordingly, we are unanimously of the view that the only appropriate sanction in relation to both charges is one of suspension for life and that is the sanction we impose."
In a damning indictment of 31-year-old Kaneria, the panel added his evidence "simply does not stand up to scrutiny and is plainly lies".
However, Kaneria, who has always maintained his innocence, said: "I'm very upset about this decision. For what reason they have convicted me I do not know.
"It is a very, very unfair decision against me. I've come all the way from Pakistan to say the truth.
"They (the ECB) don't have any proof against me. I don't know why they are saying this," he added after he, along with Westfield, was punished by a three-man panel chaired by lawyer Gerard Elias and featuring retired former England one-day international cricketer Jamie Dalrymple
Westfield was given a five-year ban for bringing cricket into disrepute, a charge the seamer accepted, although he will be able to play club cricket in the final two years of his suspension.
Kaneria's ban could signal the end of his career as the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption code requires a decision based on a member board's domestic anti-corruption rules to be recognised and respected globally.
ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, in a statement issued from Kuala Lumpur, where the global governing body's board is meeting this week, said: "I will ask the board to remind all members to put in place appropriate mechanisms to ensure that the sanctions imposed on both players in this case are appropriately recognised and respected outside of the ECB's domestic jurisdiction.
"The need to protect the game from corruption requires every one of us, including the players, to remain vigilant and work tirelessly to that end."
County matches have become targets for fixers now they are televised live in Asia, where betting on cricket is illegal in several countries.
"The increased popularity and television coverage for various domestic competitions around the world requires much more than just the ICC to be vigilant and we acknowledge the ECB's efforts in this respect," Lorgat said.
Kaneria has not played for Pakistan since making the last of his 61 Test appearances against England in August 2010 - the same tour that saw the infamous spot-fixing episode in the Lord's Test, which led to then-captain Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer being jailed on corruption charges.
Butt, jailed for 30 months last November on charges of accepting corrupt payments, was freed from an English prison on Thursday.
Aamer was released in February after serving half his six-month sentence while Asif, jailed for 12 months, was freed in May.
Butt, team-mates Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer, and agent Mazhar Majeed were accused of arranging deliberate no-balls in return for money. Aamer was released in February after serving half his six-month sentence while Asif, jailed for 12 months, was freed in May.
Around 200 fans including Butt's father Zulfiqar gathered at Lahore's international airport as the player, wearing a green shirt and jeans, made his way through the airport after being cleared by Pakistan's immigration authorities.
Fans carried banners and chanted slogans in support of their hero.
An angry Butt shouted for space before leaving but he returned 10 minutes later to talk to the media, apologising and vowing to clear his name from the spot-fixing charges that derailed his career.
"To the people of Pakistan, all the cricketers, those who support us and make us stars, I apologise," he said.
However, Butt denied he had any links to spot-fixing.
"I have no links with spot-fixing and my only mistake was that I did not make a complaint against those who made offers. I am consulting my legal advisers and will decide on when to appeal against the ICC ban," he said.
"I want to come back as a good person and cricketer."
Butt said he hoped his difficult days were behind him.
"I am happy and relieved," he said. "I want two to three days with my family and once I do that I will hold a detailed press conference to answer all questions to clear my name from spot-fixing."
AFP
Tags: sport, cricket, pakistan First posted June 23, 2012 10:33:43
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