MUMBAI
A British newspaper has revealed that Indian cricketer Suresh Raina has had links with a bookmaker. A Sri Lankan security expert who was deputed to look after the security of the Indian team during their tour of Sri Lanka earlier this year exposed Raina’s links to the bookies.
CCTV Cameras installed at the Indian team hotel showed that on more than one night Raina was in the company of a woman known to be an associate of a man allegedly linked to a bookmaker. A report, including the CCTV footage, was submitted by the Sri Lankan Cricket Board to their Indian counterparts.
BCCI kept quiet on the on the whole incident, labelling it as “baseless” and stating that she was the agent of the Indian batsman. A report in London’s Sunday Times claimed that ICC’s ACSU was probing why Indian Board kept quiet about receiving a report from Sri Lanka regarding Raina being seen in company of a woman linked to an associate of a bookie.
Terming the report as “baseless and false”, BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said the Cricket Board has not received any such complaint from the SLC. “The BCCI has just learnt that several media outlets are claiming that Sri Lanka Cricket had submitted a report on Suresh Raina to it, and that no action was taken by the Board on the same,” he said in a statement.
“The BCCI would like to clarify that it has received no such report from SLC. The claims being made by a section of the media are totally baseless and false,” he said. BCCI spokesperson Rajiv Shukla also termed the report as “untrue” and said the woman was Raina’s agent. “That is untrue and baseless.
It’s all rubbish. No complaint had ever come to BCCI from either the ICC or SLC. BCCI had never received any complaint on this matter. Actually, the lady is Raina’s agent,” Shukla said.
