LAHORE: The Pakistan Super League 2017 was rocked on Friday after Khalid Latif and Sharjeel Khan, two players from Islamabad United, were provisionally suspended from the rest of the tournament and sent back home after being suspected of spot-fixing.
According to the latest information, the bookie identified as Yousaf offered Rs 2 million to left-handed opening batsman Sharjeel Khan for stopping two balls. He was caught red-handed by PCB’s security in-charge.
Moreover, Nasir Jamshed had sent a message to Islamabad United batsman Khalid Latif through Whatsapp urging him to meet Yousaf. Following this development, Yousaf telephoned Khalid Latif on February 8.
A photo has also gone viral on social media displaying Sharjeel Khan and Khalid Latif having dinner with a suspicious person.
Khalid Latif told officials of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that suspicious person was a Pakistani. Upon which officials asked that why did not he report to them about the meeting?
Several other players including Shahzeb Hassan, Nasir Jamshed and Zulfiqar Babar were also questioned by the authorities.
Meanwhile, talking to media outside his residence in Hyderabad, father of Sharjeel Khan claimed that his son would be proved innocent in ongoing PCB’s investigation. He said that Sharjeel Khan has done nothing wrong.
“PCB has suspended Sharjeel on doubt only,” said his father.
“There were 1500 rooms in the hotel. Hundreds of people ask cricketer about selfies, how Sharjeel can discriminate between offenders and innocents one,” asked Sharjeel’s father.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was investigating whether an international syndicate had attempted to influence matches in the Pakistan Super League.
PSL Chairman Najam Sethi said in a statement that they were working with PCB s and International Cricket Council s anti-corruption units to root out corruption.
“The investigation of the PCB Anti-Corruption Unit backed by the ICC ACU has been effective in dealing with this case to date and we will continue to work in the closest collaboration as the investigation proceeds,” he said.
“We are all absolutely committed to relentlessly pursuing anyone who would seek to damage the integrity of our sport.”
